The Sincere Convert, Chapter 6

The Sincere Convert · Chapter 6

p. 155CHAP. VI.

THat the grand cause of mans eternall ruine, or why so many are damned, and so few saved by Christ, it is from themselves, Ezek. 33. 11. Why will you dye?

The great cause why so many people dye, and perish everlastingly, is because they will; every man that perisheth, is his owne Butcher, or murtherer, Matth. 23. 27. Hos. 13. 9. this is the Point we purpose to prosecute at the present.

The question here will be,Quest. how men plot and perfect their owne ruine.

By these foure principall meanes,Answ. which are the foure great Rocks that most men are split upon;How men plot their own ruin. and great necessity lyeth upon every man to know them; for when a powder-plot is discovered, the danger is almost past. I say, there are these foure causes of mans eternall overthrow, which I shall handle largely, and make use of p. 156every particular reason when it is opened and finished.

1First, by reason of that bloudy black ignorance of men, whereby thousands remaine wofully ignorant of their spirituall estate; not knowing how the case stands betweene God and their soules; but thinking themselves to be well enough already, they never seeke to come out of their misery, till they perish in it.

2Secondly, by reason of mens carnall securitie, putting the evill day farre from them, whereby they feele not their fearefull thraldome, and so never groane to come out of the flvish bondage of sinne and Sathan.

3Thirdly, By reason of mans carnall confidence, whereby they shift to save themselves by their owne duties and performances when they feele it.

4Fourthly, By reason of mans bold presumption, whereby men scramble to save themselves by their own seeming faith, when they see an insufficiency in duties, and an unworthinesse in themselves for God to save them.

p. 157I will begin with the first Reason,Ignorance the first Gene…ll Reason of mans tuine. and discover the first traine, whereby men blow up themselves, which is this: They know not their misery, nor that fearefull accursed forlorn… estate wherein they lye, but thinke and say, they shall doe as well as others; and therefore when any friend perswadeth them to come out of it, and shewes, them the danger of remaining in such a condition; what's their answer? I pray yon save your breath to coole your broth. Every Fat shall stand on his owne bottome; let me alone, I hope I have a soule to save as well as you, and shall be as carefull of it as you shall or can be; you shall not answer for my soule, I hope I shall doe as well as the precisest of you all. Hence likewise, if the Minister come home to them, they goe home with hearts full of out-cryes against the man, and their tongue dipt in gall against the Sermon. God be mercifull unto us, if all this be true; here's harsh doctrine, enough to make a man run out of his wits, and to drive p. 158me to despaire. Thus they know not their misery, and not knowing (they are lost and condemned Creatures under the ever lasting vvrath of God) They never seeke, pray, strive or follow the meanes whereby they may come out of it, and so perish in it, and never know it, till they awake with the …lames of Hell about their eares. They will acknovvledge indeed many of them, that all men are borne in a most miserable estate, but they never apply particularly that generall truth to themselves; saying, I am the man, I am now under Gods wrath, and may be snatcht away by death every houre, and then I am undone and lost for ever.

Now there are two sorts of people that are ignorant of this their miserie.

First, the common sort of prophane, blockish, ignorant people.

Secondly, the finer sort of unsound hollow professors, that have a Peacocks pride, that thinke themselves faire, and in a very good estate, though they have but one feather on their crest to boast of.

p. 159I will begin with the first sort,The 1. sort. and shevv you the reasons why they are ignorant of their misery, that is for these 4. Reasons.

First, Sometimes because they want 1the saving means of knowledge.Reason. Ther's no faithfull Minister, no compassionate Lot to tell them of fire and brim-stone from heaven for their crying sinnes; there's no Noah to forwarne them of a floud; there's no messenger to bring them tipings of those Armies of Gods devouring plagues and wrath, that are approaching neare unto them; they have no pilots, poore forsaken creatures to shevv them their rockes; they have either no Minister at all to teach them, either because the Parish is too poore, or the Church-living too great to maintaine a faithfull man (the strongest Asses carrying the greatest burdens commonly) O woefull Physitians! sometimes they be prophane, and cannot heale themselves, and sometimes they be ignorant, and know no… what to preach, unlesse they should follow p. 160the steps of Master Latimers Fryer; or at the best, they shoot off a few pot-gunnes against grosse sinnes; or if they doe shew men their misery, they licke them whole againe with some comfortable ill applyed sentences (but I hope better things of you, my brethren) the mans Patron may happily storme else. Or else they say commonly, thou hast sinned▪ but comfort thy selfe, despaire not, Christ hath suffered, and thus skin over the wound, and let it fester within for want of cutting it deeper: I say the…efore, because they want a faithfull watch-man to cry fire, fire, in that sleepy estate of sinne and darknesse vvherein they lye; therefore whole Townes, Parishes, generations of men, are burnt up, and perish miserably, Lam. 2. 14.

2Secondly, because they have no leisure to consider of their misery,Reason. when they have the meanes of revealing it unto them, as Foelix, Acts 24, 25. Many a man hath many a bitter pill given him at a Sermon, but he hath no leisure p. 161to chew upon it. One man is taken up with suites in Law, and another almost eaten up with suretiship, and carking cares how to pay his debts, and provide for his owne; another hath a great charge and few friends, and hee saith the world is hard, and hence, like a Mole, rootes in the earth, week-dayes and Sabath-dayes; the world thus calling them on one side, and lusts on another, and the Devill on the other side, they have no leisure to consider of Death, Devill, God, nor themselves, Hell nor Heaven. The Minister cryes and knockes without, but there is such a noise and lumber of tumultuous lusts and vaine thoughts in their hearts and heads, that all good thoughts are sad unwelcome guests, and are knockt downe presently.

Thirdly, because if they have leisure, they are afraid to knovv it. Hence people cry out of Ministers, that they damne all, and will heare them no more, and they vvill not bee such fooles as to beleeve all that such say; the reason is, they are afraid to know p. 162the vvorst of themselves; they are afraid to be cut, an… therefore cannot indure the Chirurgion; they thinke, to be troubled in mind as others are, is the very high-rode to despaire; and therefore if they doe heare a tale, how one after hearing of a Sermon grew distracted, or drowned, or hanged hi… selfe, it shall be an item; an a warning to them, as long as they …ve, for troubling their heads about such matters. Men of guilty consciences (hence) flie from the face of God, as prisoners from the Iudge, as debtors from the Creditor. But if the Lord of Hosts c…n catch you, you must and shall …eele with horrour of heart that which you feare a little now.

Fourthly,Reas. 4. because if they be free from this foolish feare, they cannot see their misery, by reason that they looke upon their est…tes through false glasses, and by vertue of many false princip…es in their minds, they cheat themselves.

Which false Principles are these principally; I vvill but name them.

p. 163First, They conceive, God that … 1them will not be so cruell as to dam… them.

Secondly, because they feele no misery 2(but are very well) therefore they feare none.

Thirdly, because God blesseth thē in 3their outward estates, in their Corne, childrē, calling, friends, &c. would God blesse them so i… he did not love them?

Fourthly, because they thinke sinne to be no great evill for all are sinners, 4so this cannot mischieve them.

Fifthly, because they thinke Gods 5mercy is above all his workes, though sinne be vile, yet conceiving God to be all mercy, all honey, and no justice, they thinke they are well.

Sixthly, because they thinke Christ 6dyed for all sinners, and they confesse themselves to be great ones.

Seventhly, because they hope well, 7and so thinke to have vvell.

Eightly, because they do as most do, 8who never crying out of their sinnes while they lived, & dying like Lambs, at last they doubt not for their parts, p. 164doing as such doe, they shall dye happily as others have done.

9Ninthly, because their desires and hearts are good, as they thinke.

10Tenthly, because they doe as vvell as God will give them grace, and so God is in the fault onelyonly, if they perish.

These are the reasons and grounds upon which profane people are deceived.

Novv it follovveth to shew the grounds on which the finer sort miscarry.

Secondly,2. Sort. Hollow Professors cheat and cozen their ovvne soules. It is in our Church, as it is in an old Wood, where there are many tall Trees, yet cut them and search them deeply, they prove pithlesse, saplesse, hollow, unsound creatures. These men twist their ovvne ruine vvith a finer thread, and can juggle better then the common sort, and cast mists before their owne eyes, and so cheat their ovvne soules. p. 165It's Ministers first work to turne men from darknesse into this light. Act. 26. 18. and the Spirits first worke to convince men of sinne, Ioh. 16. 9. and therefore it's peoples maine worke to know the worst at first of themselves.

Novv the cause of these mens mistaking is three-fold.How men come to be deceived about their spirituall estates.

First, the spirituall madnesse and drunkennesse of their Vnderstanding.

Secondly, the false bastard peace 1begot and nourished in the Conscience.

Thirdly, the sly and secret distempers 3of the Will.

First, There are these seven drunken distempers in the understanding or minde of man, whereby he commeth to be most miserably deceived.

First, the understandings Arrogancie. 1You shall never see a man meane and vile in his owne eyes deceived Psal. 25. 9. but a proud man or woman is often cheated; Hence proud Haman thought surely hee was the man whom p. 166the King would honour, Esthe… 6. 6.vvhen in truth it was intended for poore Mo…decay: For, pride having once overspread the mind, it ever hath this property, it makes a penny stand for a pound, a sparke is blown up to a flame, it makes a great matter of a little seeming grace, and therefore the proud Pharisee, when hee came to reckon with himselfe, hee takes his poore counter, that is, I am not as other men, nor as this Publican, and sets it downe for 1000. pound, that is, hee esteemes of himselfe, as a very rich man for it: So many a man because hee hath some good thing in himselfe, as, hee is pittifull to the poore, hee is a true man though a poore man, hee was never given to wine, or women. Hee magnifieth himselfe for this title, and so deceives and over-reckons himselfe. There are your Bristow-stones like Diamonds, and many cheaters cozen Countrey folkes with them, that desire to bee fine, and know not what Diamonds are. So many men are desirous to be honest p. 167and to be reputed so, not knowing what true grace meanes, therefore Bristow-stones are p…rles in their eyes. A little seeming grace shines so bright in their eyes, that they are halfe bewitched by it, to thinke highly of themselves, although they be but glittering seeming jewels in a swines snout. A cab of Doves dung was sould in Samaria's time of famine at a great rate; a man living in such a place, where all about him are either ignorant, or prophane, or civill, a little morall honesty (dung in respect of true grace) goes a great way, and is esteemed highly of, and he is as honest a man as ever lived. A man that lookes through a red glasse, all things appeare red; a man looking upon himselfe through some faire spectacles, through some one good thing that hee hath in himselfe, appeares faire to him. It is said, Luke 20. ult. the Pharisees devoured widowes houses. Might not this racking of Rents make them question their estates? No. Why? They for pretence made long prayers: so, many men are drunke now p. 168and then, but they are sorry; they cannot but …inne, but their desires are good; they talke idly, but they live honestly; they doe ill sometimes, but they meane well. Thus when some good things are seene in themselves, pride puffs them with an overweening conceit of it, and so they cozen their owne soules.

2Secondly, the understandings Obstinacy: whereby the minde having been long rooted in this opinion, that I am in a good estate, will not suffer this conceit to be pluckt out of it. Now, your old rooted, yet rotten professors, having growne long in a good conceit of themselves, will not beleeve that they have beene fooles all their life-time, and therefore now must pull downe, and lay the foundation againe; and hence you shall have many say of a faithfull Minister, that doth convince and condemne them and their estate to be most woefull; vvhat? shall such an upstart teach me? doth hee think to make me dance after his pipe, and to think that all my good prayers, p. 169my faith, my charity, have beene so long abominable and vile before God? No silver can bribe a man to cast away his old traditionall opinions and conceits whereby he cheats himselfe, till Christs blood doe it, 1 Pet. 1. 18. And hence the woman of Samaria objected this against Iesus Christ, that their old Fathers worshipped in that Mountaine, and therefore it was as good a place as Ierusalem, the place of Gods true worship, Ioh. 4. 20. Men grow crooked and aged with good opinions of themselves, and can seldome or never be set straight againe. Hence such kinde of people though they would faine bee taken for honest religious Christians, yet will never suspect their estates to be bad themselves, neither can they endure, that any other should search or suspect them to be yet rotten at the heart: And are not those wares and commodities much to bee suspected, nay concluded to be starke naught which the seller vvill needs put upon the chapman without seeing or looking on them first? It's a strong argument p. 170we produce against the Papists Religion to be suspected to be bad, because they obtrude their opinions on their followers to be beleeved without any hesitation or dispute about them, either before or after they have embraced them: certainly thy old faith, thy old prayers, thy old honesty or forme of piety are counterfeit wares, that cānot ondure searching, because thou wilt not be driven from this conceit, I am in a good estate, I have beene so long of this good mind and therefore will not begin to doubt now. It's to be feared, that such kind of people, (as I have much observed) are either notoriously ignorant, or have sometime or other fallen into some horrible secret grievous sinnes, as whoredome, oppression, or the like, the guilt of which lying yet secretly on them, makes them fly from the light of Gods truth, which would find them out, quarrelling both against it, and the Ministers that preach it, Rom. 2. 8. And therefore as it is with theeves when they have any stollen goods brought within doores, they will p. 171not be searched or suspected, but say, they are as honest men as themselves that come to search, for they feare if they be found out, that they shall be troubled before the judge, and may hardly escape with their lives: so many old Professors, when the Minister comes to search them, they clap to the doores upon the man and truth to…, and say they hope to be saved as well as the best of them all. The reason is, they are guilty, they are loath to bee troubled and cast downe by seeing the worst of themselves, and thinke it's hard for them to goe to heaven, and be saved, if they have beene in a wrong way all their life-time. An honest heart will cry after the best meanes, Lord search me, Iohn 3. 20. and open all the doores to the entertainment of the straightest, strictest truths.

Thirdly, the understandings Obscurity 3or ignorance of the infinite exactnesse, glorious purity, and absolute perfection of the Law of God; whence it commeth to passe, that this burning Lamp or bright sunne of Gods Law, p. 172being set in their mindes, rotten grounds of their ovvne righteousnesse, doing some things according to the Law of God, shines and glisters gloriously in their eyes, in the darke night time of dismall darknesse, by doing of which they thinke they please GOD, and their estates are very good, I was alive, saith Paul, Rom. 7. 9. without the Law, and he gives the reason of it, because sin did but sleepe in him like a cut-throat in an house, where all is quiet. Before the Law came, hee saw not that deadly secret core of corruption, and that litter of Rebellion that was lurking in his heart, and therefore thought highly of himselfe for his owne Righteousnesse. The Gospell is a glasse to shew men the face of God in Christ, 2 Cor. 2. ult. The Law is that glasse that sheweth a man his owne face, and what hee himselfe is. Now if this glasse be taken away, and not set before a deformed heart, how can a man but thinke himselfe faire? And this is the reason why civill men, formalists, almost every one, thinke p. 173better of themselves then indeed they are, because they reckon without their hoast, that is, they judge of the number, nature, and greatnesse of their sins by their owne bookes, by their owne reason, they look not Gods debt-book, Gods exact lawes over, and compare themselves therewith; If they did, it would amaze the stoutest heart, and plucke downe mens plumes, and make them say, is there any mercy so great as to passe by such sinnes, and to put up such wrongs, and to forgive such sinnes and debts, one of which alone may undoe me, much more so many?

…ourthly, the understandings Security 4or sleepinesse, whereby men never reflect upon their owne actions, nor compare them with the rule; although they have knowledg of the law of God, yet it is with them, as it is with men that have a faire glasse before them, but never beholding thēselves in the glasse, they never see their spots. This is the woe of most unregenerate men; they want a reflecting power & light to judg of themselves by, Ier. 8. 6. you shall p. 174have them thinke on a Sermon, Here's for such an one, and such an one is …ouched here; when it may be the same Sermon principally speakes of them; But they never say, this concerneth me, I was found out through the goodnesse of the Lord to day, and surely the man spake unto none but unto me, as if some body had told him what I have done. And hence you shall find out many lame Christians, that will yeeld to all the truthes delivered in a Sermon, and commend it too, but goe a way, and shake off all truthes that serve to convince them. And hence many men, when they examine themselves in generall, whether they have grace or no, whether they love Christ or no, they think yes, that they doe withall their hearts; yet, they neither have this grace or any other, what ever they thinke, because they want a reflecting light to judge of generalls by their owne particular courses. For, tell these men, that he that loves another truely, will often thinke of him, speake of him, rejoyce in his company, p. 175will not wrong him willingly in the least thing: Now aske them if they love Christ thus; If they have any reflecting of light, they will see, where they have one thought of Christ, they have 1000. on other things. Rejoyce? nay they are weary of his company in word, in prayer. And that they doe not onelyonly wrong him, but make a light matter of it, when it is done, all are sinners, and no man can live without sin. Like a sleepy man (fire burning in his bed-straw) he cryes not out, when others haply lament his estate, that see a farre off, but cannot helpe him, Isay, 42. 25. A man that is to be hanged the next day, may dreame overnight, hee shall be a King; why? because hee is asleepe, hee reflects not on himselfe. Thou mayest goe to the Devill and be damned, and yet ever thinke and dreame, that all is well with thee. Thou hast no reflecting light to judge of thy selfe. Pray, pray therefore that the Lord would turne your eyes inward, and doe not let the Devill and delusion shut you out of your owne p. 176house from seeing what Court is kept there every day.

5Fiftly, the understandings impiety; whereby it lessens and vilifies the glorious grace of God in another: whence it comes to passe, that this deluded soule seeing none much better then himselfe, concludes, if any be saved, … shall no doubt be one, Isay 26. 10, 11. Men will not behold the Majesty of God in the lives of his people; many a man being too light, yet desirous to goe and passe for current, weighs himselfe with the best people, and thinkes, what have they that J have not? what doe they that J doe not? and if he see they goe beyond him, he then turnes his owne ballance with his finger, and makes them too light, that so he himselfe may passe for weight.

And this vilifying of them and their grace, judging them to be of no other mettall then other men, appeares in three particulars.

First, they raise up false reports, of Gods people, and nourish a kennell of evill suspitions of them: if they know p. 177any sin committed by them, they will 1conclude, they be all such; if they see no offensive sinne in any of them, they are then reputed a pack of Hypocrites: If they are not so uncharitable (having no grounds) they prophesy they will hereafter be as bad as others, though they carry a faire flourish now.

Secondly, if they judge well of 2them, then they compare themselves to them, by taking a scantling onelyonly by their outside, and by what they see in them, and so, like children, seeing stars a great way off, think them no bigger nor brighter then winking candles. They stand a far off from seeing the inside of a child of God, they see not the glory of God filling that temple, they see not the sweet influence they receive from heaven, and that fellowship they have with their God; and hence they judge but meanly of them, because the out side of a Christian is the worst part of him, and his glory shines chiefly within.

Thirdly, if they see, Gods people 3doe excell them, that they have better p. 178lives, and better hearts, & better knowledge, yet they will not conclude that they have no grace, because it hath not that stamp that honest mens money hath. But this prank they play, they think such and such good men have a greater measure, and a higher degree of grace then themselves, yet they dare be bold to thinke and say, their hearts are as upright, though they be not so perfect as others are; And so vilifie the grace that shines in the best men, by making this gold to differ from their owne copper, not essentially but gradually, and hence they deceive themselves miserably, not but that one (starre or) sincere Christian differs from another in glory: I speake of those men onelyonly, that never were fixt in so high a sphere, as true honesty dwells, yet falsely father this bad conclusion, that they are upright for their measure, that they have not the like measure of grace received as others have.

6Sixthly, the understandings idolatry: whereby the mind sets up, and p. 179bowes down to a false image of grace; that is, the minde being ignorant of the height and excellence of true grace, takes a false scantling of it, and so imagins and fancies within it selfe, such a measure of common grace to be true grace, which the soule easily having attained unto, conceives it is in the state of grace, and so deceives it selfe miserably, Rom. 10. 3.

And the minde comes to set up her image thus.

First, the minde is haunted and pursued 1with troublesome feares of Hell. Conscience tells him, hee hath sinned, and the Law tells him he shall die, and Death appeares and tells him, he must shortly meere with him; And if he be taken away in his sinnes, then comes a black day of reckoning for all his privie prankes, a day of bloud, horrour, judgement and fire, where no creature can comfort him. Hence saith hee, Lord, keepe my soule from these miseries; hee hopeth it shall not prove so evill with him, but feares it will.

p. 1802Secondly, Hereupon hee desireth peace and ease, and some assurance of freedome from these evils. For it is an Hell above ground, ever to be on the wrack of tormenting feares.

3Thirdly, That he may have ease, he will not swagger his trouble away, nor drowne it in the bottome of the cup, nor throw it away with his Dice, nor play it away at Cards, but desires some grace, (and commonly it's the least measure of it too:) Hereupon he desires to heare such Sermons, and read such Bookes as may best satisfie him concerning the least measure of grace; for, sinne onelyonly troubling him, grace onelyonly can comfort him soundly: And so, Grace, which is meate and drinke to an holy heart, is but Physicke to this kinde of men, to ease them of their feares and troubles.

4Hereupon being ignorant of the height of true grace, he fancieth to himselfe such a measure of common grace to be true grace. As, if he feeles himselfe ignorant of that which troubles p. 181him: so much knowledge will I then get, saith he. …f some foule sinnes in his practise trouble him, these he will cast away, and so reformes: If omission of good duties molests him, he will heare better, and buy some good Prayer-booke, and pray oftner. And if he be perswaded such a man is a very honest man, then he will strive to doe as he doth; and now he is quieted.

When he hath attained unto this 5pitch of his ovvne, now he thinkes himselfe a young beginner, and a good one too, so that if he dyeth, he thinkes hee shall doe well; if he liveth, he thinkes and hopes he shall grow better; and vvhen he is come to his ovvne pitch, here he sets downe his state fully satisfied. And novv, if he be prest to get into the estate of grace, his answer is, That is not to be done now, he thankes God, that care is past. The truth is (beloved) 'tis too high for him; his owne legges could never carry him thither, all his grace, comming by his owne working, not by God Almighties power. Let a man have false p. 182weights, he is cheated grievously with light gold; why? because his weights are too light: So these men have too light weights to judge of the weight of true grace; therefore light, clipt, crackt pieces cheat them. Hence you shall have those men commend pithlesse, saplesse men for very honest men as ever brake bread; why? they are just answerable to their weights. Hence I have not much wondered at them, who maintaine that a man may fall away from true grace: The reason lyeth here: They set up to themselves such a common worke of grace to bee true grace; from which, no wonder that a man may fall. Hence Bellarmine saith, That which is true Grace, veritate essentiae onelyonly, may be lost, not that grace which is true, veritate firmae soliditatis; which latter, being rightly understood, may be called speciall, as the other, common grace. Hence also you shall have many Professors hearing a hundred Sermons, never moved to grovv better. Hence likewise you shall see our common p. 183Preachers comfort every one almost, that they see troubled in minde, because they thinke presently, they have true grace: Now they begin to be sorrowfull for their sinnes. 'Tis just according to their owne light weights.

For the Lords sake take heed of this deceit. True grace (I tell you) it's a rare pearle, a glorious Sun clowded from the eyes of all but them that have it, Rev. 2. 18. a strange admirable, almighty worke of God upon the soule, vvhichwhich no created power can produce, as far different in the least measure of it, from the highest degree of common grace, as a Devill is from an Angell; for 'tis Christ living, breathing, raigning, fighting, conquering in the soule. Downe therefore with your Idoll grace, your Idoll honesty: true Grace never aimes at a pitch, it aspires onelyonly to perfection, Phil. 3. 12, 13. And therefore Chrysostome calls Saint Paul, insatiabilis Dei cultor: A greedy, insatiable, devouring worshipper of the Lord Almighty.

Seventhly, The Understandings errour p. 184is another cause of mans ruine. And that is seene principally in these five things, these …ive errours or false conceits.

1First, In judging some trouble of minde, some light sorrow for sinne to be true Repentance; and so thinking they doe repent, hope they shall bee saved; for sinne is like sweet poyson, while a man is drinking it dovvne by committing of it, thers much pleasure in it, but after the committing of it, there is a sting in it, Prov. 23. 31. 32. then the time commeth when this poyson workes, making the heart swell vvith griefe, sorry they are at the heart, they say, for it; and the eyes drop, and the man that committed sin vvith delight, now cryes out vvith griefe in the bitternesse of his soule; O that I, beast that I am, had never committed it, Lord, mercy, mercy, Prov. 5. 3, 4. 11. 12. Nay, it may be they vvill fast, and humble, and afflict their soules voluntarily for sinne, and now they think they have repented, Isai. 58: 3. and hereupon, when they heare, that all p. 185that sinne shall dye, they grant this is true indeed, except a man repent, and so they thinke they have done already.

This is true, At what time soever a sinner repents, the Lord will blot out his iniquities. But this Repentance is not when a man is troubled somewhat in mind for sinne, but when he commeth to mourne for sinne as his greatest evill, as if he should see all his goods and estate on a light fire before him; and that not for some sinnes, but all sinnes, little and great; and that not for a time, for a fit and away (a Land-floud of sorrow) but alwaies like a Spring never dry, but ever running all a mans life-time.

Secondly, In judging the striving 2of conscience against sinne, to be the striving of the flesh against the Spirit, and hence come these speeches from carnall blacke mouthes? The Spirit is willing, but the flesh is weake: and hence men thinke, they being thus compounded of flesh and spirit, are regenerate, and in no worse estate then the Children of God themselves: as p. 186sometime I once spake with a man that did verily thinke, that Pilate was an honest man, b…cause he was so unwilling to crucifie Christ; which unwillingnesse did arise onelyonly from the restraint of conscience against the Fact. So many men judge honestly, yet simply upon such a ground of themselves, they say, they strive against their sin…es, but Lord be mercifull unto them, they say the flesh is fraile; and hence Arminius gives a diverse interpretation of the seventh Chapter of the Romans from ordinary Divines; concerning which, Paul speakes in the person of an unregenerate man, because he observed divers gracelesse persons (as hee saith himselfe) having fallen, and falling commonly into sinnes against conscience, to bring that chapter in their owne defe…ce and comfort, because they did that which they allowed not, vers. 15. and so it was not they, but sinne that dvvelled in them.

And so, many among us know, they should be better, and strive that they may grow better, but through the power p. 187of sin, cannot; conscience telleth them they must not sinne, their hearts and lusts say they must sinne; and here forsooth is flesh and spirit: Oh no, here is, conscience and lust onelyonly by the eares together. Which striving, Herod, Balaam, Pilate, or the vilest Reprobate in the World may have. Such a vvarre argueth not any grace in the heart, but rather more strength of corruption, and more power of sinne in the heart; as, it's no vvonder if a horse run avvay vvhen he is loose; but when his bit and bridle is in his mouth, now to bee wilde, argueth he is altogether untamed and subdued. Take …eed therefore of judging your estate to bee good, because of some backvvardnesse of your hearts to commit some sinnes, though little sinnes; for thy sinnes may be, and, it is most certaine, are more powerfull in thee, then in others that have not the like struglings, because they have not such checks as thou hast to restraine thee. Knovv therefore that the striving of the Spirit against the Flesh, is against p. 188sinne, because it is sinne; as a man hates a Toad, though he be never poisoned by it; But the striving of thy conscience against sinne, is onelyonly againe sin, because it is a troubling, or a damning sinne; The striving of the spirit against the flesh, is from a deadly hatred of sinne, Rom. 7. 15. But thy striving of conscience against sinne, is onelyonly from a feare of the danger of sinne; for Balaam had a mind to curse the Israelites for his monies sake, but if he might have had an house full of silver and gold (which is a goodly thing in a covetous eye) it is said, hee durst not curse them.

3Thirdly, In judging of the sincerity of the heart by some good affection in the heart. Hence many a deluded soule reasons the case out thus with himselfe: Either J must be a prophane man, or an Hypocrite, or an upright man. Not profane, I thanke God, for I am not given to whoring, drinking, oppression, swearing: Nor Hypocrite, for I hate these shewes, I cannot indure to appeare better without then I am within; p. 189therefore I am upright. Why? Oh, because mine heart is good, mine affections & desires within are better then my life without, and what ever others judge of me, I know mine own heart, & the heart is all that God desires. And thus they foole themselves, Prov. 28. 26. This is one of the greatest causes and grounds of mistake amongst men that thinke best of themselves: they are not able to put a difference betweene the good desires and strong affections that arise from the love of Jesus Christ.

Selfe-love will make a man seeke his own good and safety; hence it will pull a man out of his bed betimes in the morning, and call him up to pray; it will take him and cary him into his chamber towards evening, and there privately make him seeke, and pray, and tug hard for pardon, for Christ, for mercy, Lord evermore give us of this bread▪ But the love of Christ makes a man desire Christ and his honour for himselfe, & all other things for Christ. It is true, the desires of Sonnes in p. 190Christ by faith are accepted ever, but the desire of servants, men that worke onelyonly for their wages out of Christ, are not.

4Fourthly, In judging of Gods love to them, by aiming sometimes at the glory of God. Is this possible, that a man should aime at Gods glory, and yet perish?2 King. 10 18.2 Kgs 10:18 Yes, and ordinary too. A man may be liberall to the poore, maintaine the Ministery, be forward and stand for good things, whence he may not doubt but that God loves him: But here is the difference, though a wicked man may make Gods glory in some particular things his end, yet he never makes it in his generall course his utmost and last end: A subtle Apprentice may doe all his Masters work, but he may take the gaine to himselfe, or divide it betwixt his Master and himselfe, and so may be but a Knave, as observant as he seemes to be: So a subtle heart, (yet a vile villanous heart) may forsake all the world, as Iudas did, may binde himselfe Apprentice to all the duties God requireth outwardly p. 191at his hands, and so doe good works, but what's his last end? It's that hee might gaine respect or place, or that Christ may have some part of the glory, and he another. Simon Magus would give any money sometimes that he could pray so well, know so much, and doe as others doe, and yet his last end is for himselfe; but how can you beleeve, if you seeke not that glory that comes from God, sayes Christ? there's many seeke the honour of Christ, but doe you seeke his honour onelyonly; Is it your last end, where you rest and seeke no more but that? If thou wouldest know whether thou makest Christs glory thy last end, observe this Rule:

If thou art more grieved for the eclipse of thine owne honour, and for thine owne losses, then for the losse of Gods honour, it is an evident signe thou lovest it not, desirest it not as thy chiefest good, as the last end, for thy summum bonum, and therefore doest not seeke Gods honour, in the prime and chiefest place. Sinne troubled Paul more than all the plagues and miseries p. 192of the world: Indeed, if thy name be dashed with disgrace, and thy will be crossed, thy heart is grieved and disquieted, but the Lord may lose his honour daily by thine owne sinnes, and those that be round about thee, but not a teare, not a sigh, not a groane, to behold such a spectacle. As sure as the Lord lives, thou seekest not the Lords name, or honour, as thy greatest good.

5Fifthly, In judging the power of sinne to be but infirmitie; for if any thing trouble an unregenerate man, and makes him call his estate into question, it is sinne either in the being or power of it. Now sinne in the being ought no…, must not, make a man question his estate, because the best have that left in them, that will humble them, and make them live by faith; therefore the power of sinne onelyonly can trouble a man. Now if a man doe judge of this to be onelyonly but infirmitie, which the best are compassed about withall; hee cannot but lie downe securely, and thinke himselfe well. And if this errour p. 193be setled in one that lives in no one knowne sinne, it is very difficult to remove: for let the Minister cast the sparkes of hell in their faces, and denounce the terrour of God against them, they are never stirred: why? because they thinke, here's for you that live in sinne, but as for themselves, although they have sinnes, yet they strive against them, and so cannot leave them; for, we must have sinne as long as we live here, they say. Now marke it, there's no surer signe of a man under the bloudy raigne, and dominion of his lusts and sinnes, than this; that is, to give way to sinne, (though never so little and common) nor to be greatly troubled for sinne (for they may be a little troubled) because they cannot overcome sinne; I deny not, but the best doe sinne daily; yet this is the disposition of Paul, and every child of God, he mourneth not the lesse, but the more for sinne; though he cannot quite subdue them, cast them out and overcome them▪ As a prisoner mournes the more that he is bound with such p. 194fetters he cannot breake; so doth eyery one truely sensible of his woefull captivitie by sinne; This is the great difference between a raging sinne a man will part with all, and a sinne of infirmity a man cannot part withall; a sinne of infirmitie is such a sinne as a man would, but cannot part with it, and hence he mournes the more for it. A raging sinne is such a sinne, as a man happily by vertue of his lashing conscience, would sometimes part withall, but cannot, and hence mournes the lesse for it, and gives way unto it. Now for the Lords sake take heede of this deceit; for I tell you, those sinnes you cannot part withall, if you groane not day and night under them, (saying; O Lord, helpe me, for I am weary of my selfe) and my life, will certainly undoe you. You say, you cannot but speake idely, and thinke vainely, and doeill, as all doe sometimes; I tell you, those sinnes shall be everlasting chaines to hold you fast in the power of the devill untill the Judgement of the great day.

p. 195And thus much of the understandings corruption, whereby men are commonly deluded; Now followeth the second.

Secondly, in regard of the false bastard 2peace begot in the conscience. Why should the Campe tremble when Scouts are asleepe, or give a false report, when the enemies are neare them? Most men thinke they are in a safe estate, because they were never in a troubled estate, or if they have beene troubled, because they have got some peace and comfort after it.

Now this false peace is begot in the heart,How false peace is bred in the soule. by these foure meanes.

1. By Sathan.

2. By false teachers.

3. By a false spirit.

4. By a false application of true promises.

1. By Sathan, whose kingdome shall 1fall if it should be divided, and be alwayes in a combustion: hence he laboureth p. 196for peace, Luke 11. 21. When the strong man keepeth the palace, his goods be in peace, that is, when Sathan armed with abundance of shifts and carnall reasonings possesseth mens soules, they are at peace.

Now looke as Masters give their servants peace, even so the devill.

1. By removing all things that may trouble them: and

2. By giving unto them all things that may quiet and comfort them, as meat, drinke, rest, lodging, &c. so doth Sathan deale with his slaves and servants.

First, by removing those sins which trouble the conscience; for a man may live in a sinne, and yet never be troubled for that sinne; for sinne against the light of conscience onelyonly troubles the conscience; as children that are tumbling and playing in the dust, they are not troubled with all the dust, nay, they take pleasure to wallow in it; but onelyonly with that (whether it be small or great) that lights in their eyes. And hence that young man came boasting p. 197to Christ, that hee had kept all the commandements from his youth, but went away sorrowfull, because that dust, that sinne he lived in with delight before, fell into his eyes, and therefore was troubled: Now marke the plot of the Devill, when he can make a man live, and wallow, and delight in his sinnes, and so serve him, and yet will not suffer him to live in any sinne against conscience, whereby he should be troubled, and so seeke to come out of his woefull estate, he is sure this man is his owne; and now a poore deluded man himselfe goes up and downe, not doubting but he shall be saved; why? because their conscience (they thanke God) is cleare, and they know of no one sinne they live in, they know nothing by themselves, that may make them so much as suspect their estate is bad, Matth. 9. 13. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance, that is, such an one as in his owne opinion, is fish whole; every sinne being a child of Gods sicknesse, he is never without some kinde of sorrow: but some sins p. 198onelyonly being a naturall mans sicknesse, they being removed, he recovers out of his former sorrow, and growes well againe, and thinkes himselfe sound: but, the Lord Jesus never came to save such, therefore Satankeepes possession of them. For the Lords sake looke to this subtilty; many thinke themselves in a good estate, because they know not the particular sinne they live in, whereas Satan may have stronger possession of such as are bound with his invisible fetters and chaines, when those that have their pinching bolts on them may sooner escape.

2Secondly, By giving the soule liberty to recreate it selfe in any sinfull course, wherein the eye of conscience may not be pricked and wounded. Servants when they are put alwayes to worke, and never can goe abroad, are weary both of work and Master: that Master pleaseth them, that giveth them most liberty. To be pent up all the day long in doing Gods worke, watching, praying, fighting against every sinne, this is a burden, this is too p. 199strict, and because that they cannot endure it, they thinke the Lord lookes not for it at their hands. Now Satan gives men libertie in their sinfull courses; and this libertie begets peace, and this peace makes them thinke well of themselves, 2 Pet. 2. 19. There's many rotten professors in these dayes, that indeed will not open their mouthes against the sincere hearted people of God, yet they walke loosely, and take too much liberty in their speeches, liberty in their thoughts, liberty in their desires and delights, liberty in their company, in their pastimes, and that sometimes under a pretence of Christian liberty, and never trouble themselves with these needlesse controversies, to what end, or in what manner doe I use these things? whereas the righteous man feareth alway, considering there is a snare for him in every lawfull liberty. May not I sinne in my mirth, in my speaking, in my sleeping? Oh! this liberty that the Devill gives, and the world takes, besots most men with a foolish opinion, that all is well with them.

p. 2003Thirdly, by giving the soule good dyet, meate and drinke enough, what dish he likes best. Let a Master give liberty, yet his servant is not pleased, unlesse he hath meate and drinke and food: so there's no wicked man under Heaven, but as he takes too much liberty in the use of lawfull things, so he feedeth his heart with some unlawfull secret lust, though all the time they live in it, it may be, it is unknown to them, Luk. 16. Dives had his dish, his good things, and so sang himselfe a sleepe, and bad his soule take his ease and rest: yea observe, this dyet is poysoned in it selfe, but ever commended to the soule as wholsome, good, and lawfull. They christen sinne with a new name, as Popes are at their election; if he be bad, they call him sometimes Pius, if a coward, Leo, &c. So covetousnesse is good husbandry; company keeping, good neighbourhood; lying, to save their credit from cracking, but a handsome excuse: and hence the soule goes peaceably on, and beleeves he is in a good estate.

p. 2014Fourthly, by giving the soule rest and sleepe, that is, cessation sometimes from the act of sinne; hence they are hardly perswaded that they live in sin, because they cease sometimes from the act of sinne, as no man doth alwayes sweare, nor is he alwayes drunk, nor alwayes angry. They think, onelyonly their falls in these or the like sinnes, are slips and falls, which the best man may have sometimes, and yet be a deare child of God. Oh! Satan will not alwayes set men at his worke; for if men should alwayes have their cups in their hands, and their queanes in their armes; if a covetous man should alwayes root in the earth, and never pray, never have good thoughts, never keepe any Sabbath, if a man should alwayes speake idely, and never good word drop from him, a mans conscience would never be quiet, but shaking him up for what he doth; but by giving men respite from sinning for a time, Satan getteth stronger possession afterwards, as Matth. 12. 43. When the uncleane spirit is gone out of a man, it returnes p. 202worse. Sampsons strength alwayes remained, and so doth sinnes strength in a naturall man, but it never appeares untill temptation come.

5Fifthly, By giving the soule faire promises of Heaven and eternall life, and fastning them upon the heart. Most men are confident their estate is good, and though God kills them, yet will they trust in him, and cannot be beaten from this. Why? oh! Satan bewitcheth them: For as he told Evah by the Serpent, shee should not dye, so doth he infinuate his perswasions to the soule, though it live in sinne, he shall not dye, but doe well enough, as the precisest. Satan gives thus good words, but wofull wages, the eternall flashes of Hell.

IIII. By false Teachers. Who partly by their loose examples, partly by their flattering doctrines in publike, and their large charitie in private, dawbing up every one (especially that is a good friend unto them) for honest and religious people, and if they be but a little troubled, applying comfort p. 203presently, and so healing them that should be wounded, and not telling them roundly of their Herodias, as Iohn Baptist did Herod. Hereupon they judge themselves honest, because the Minister will give them the beggerly pasport, and so they goe out of the world, and dye like Lambes, being wofully cheated, Matth. 24. 11. Looke abroad in the world, and see what is the reason so many feed their hearts with confidence they shall be saved, yet their lives condemne them, and their hearts acquit them; the reason is, such and such a Minister will goe to the Ale-house, and he never prayes in his Family, and he is none of these precise hot people, and yet as honest a man as ever lives, and a good Divine too. Ahab was miserably cheated by foure hundred false Prophets. Whilst the Minister is of a loose life himselfe, he will winke at others and their faults, least in reproving them, he should condemne himselfe, and others should say unto him, Physitian, heale thy selfe. Theeves of the same p. 204company will not steale from one another, least they trouble thereby themselves; and hence they give others false Cards to saile by, false Rules to live by; their unconscionable large charitie, is like a gulfe that swalloweth Ships (soules I meane) tossed with tempests, and not comforted, Isa. 54. 7, 8. and hence all being fish that commeth to their net, all men thinke so of themselves.

IIIIII. A false spirit. This is a third cause that begets a false peace; as there is a true Spirit that witnesseth to our spirits, that wee are Sonnes of God, Rom. 8. 16. So there is a false spirit, just like the true one, witnessing that they are the Sonnes of GOD, 1 Iohn 4. 1. we are bid to try the spirits: now, if these spirits were not like Gods true Spirit, what need tryall? As, what need one try whether dirt be gold, which are so unlike to each other. And this spirit I take to be set downe, Matth. 24. 23. Now looke as the true Spirit witnesseth, so the false spirit, being like it, witnesseth also.

p. 205First, The Spirit of God humbles 1the soule: So before men have the witnesse of the false spirit, they are mightily cast downe and dejected in spirit, and hereupon they pray for ease, and purpose to lead new lives, and cast away the weapons, and submit, Psal. 66. 3.

Secondly, the Spirit of God in the 2Gospel reveales Jesus Christ, and his willingnesse to save; so the false spirit discovereth Christs excellency and willingnesse to receive him, if he will but come in. It fateth with this soule as with Surveyors of Lands, that take an exact compasse of other mens grounds, of which they shall never enjoy a Foot. So did Balaam, Num. 24. 5, 6. this false spirit sheweth them the glory of Heaven and Gods people.

Thirdly, Hereupon the soule commeth 3to be affected, and to taste the goodnesse and sweetnesse of Jesus Christ, as those did, Heb, 6. and the soule breakes out into a passionate admiration: Oh … that ever there should p. 206be any hope for such a vile wretch as I am and have been, and so joyes exceedingly, like a man halfe way wrapt up into Heaven.

4Fourthly, Hereupon the soule being comforted after it was wounded, now calleth God, my God, and Christ, my sweet Saviour, and now it doubts not but it shall be saved; why? because I have received much comfort after much sorrow, and doubting, Hos. 8. 2, 3. and yet remaines a deluded miserable creature still. But here marke the difference betweene the witnesse of each spirit. The false spirit makes a man beleeve he is in the state of grace, and shall be saved, because he hath tasted of Christ, and so hath been comforted, and that abundantly: But the true Spirit perswades a man, his estate is good and safe, because he hath not onelyonly tasted, but bought this Christ; as the wise Merchant in the Gospel, that rejoyced he had found the pearle, but yet stayes not here, but sells away all, and buyes the pearle. Like two Chapmen that come to buy Wine, p. 207the one tasts it, and goeth away in a drunken fit, and so concludes it is his: So a man doth, that hath the false spirit: but the true spirited man doth not onelyonly taste, but buyes the Wine, although he doe not drinke it all downe, when he cōmeth to taste it; yet he having been incited by tasting to buy it, now he calls it his owne: So a child of God tasting a little of God, and a little of Christ, and a little of the promises at his first conversion, although he tastes not all the sweetnesse that is in God, yet he forsakes all for God, for Christ, and so takes them lawfully as his owne.

Againe, the false spirit having given a man comfort and peace, suffers a man to rest in that estate; but the true spirit having made the soule taste the Love of the Lord, stirreth up the soule to doe and worke mightily for the Lord. Now the soule cryeth out; What shall I doe for Christ that hath done wonders for me? if every haire on my head were a tongue to speake of his goodnesse, it were too little. Nehem. p. 2088. 10. the joy of the Lord is our strength. Psal. 51. 12. Vphold me with thy free spirit, or as the Chaldean paraphrase hath it, thy kingly spirit; the Spirit of Adoption in Gods childe is no underling, suffering men to lye downe, and cry, my desires are good, but flesh is fraile; No, It is a kingly spirit that raignes where it liveth.

IVIV. False applying of true promises, is the last cause of false peace. And when a man hath Gods Spirit within, and Gods hand and promise (as he thinks) for his est…e, now he thinkes all safe. Thus did the Iewes, they said, Wee have Abraham to our Father, and so reputed themselves safe, God having made them promise, I will be a God of thee, and of thy seed. But here is a difference betweene a child of Gods application of them & a wicked mans; the first applieth them so to him, as that he liveth upon them,Ps. 38. 16.Ps 38:16 and nothing but them; and to whom doth the dugge belong, but to the childe that liveth upon it. The other lives upon p. 209his lusts, and creatures, and yet catcheth hold on the promise.

By these foure meanes is begot a bastard false peace.

Thus much of the second cause of mans deceiving himselfe; False peace in the Conscience.

Now followeth the third.

III. The corruptions and distempers 111of the Will, which is the third cause why men deceive themselves. Which are many. I will onelyonly name three.

First, When the Will is resolved to 1goe on in a sinfull course, and then sets the understanding a worke to defend it. Whence it fareth with the soule, as with a man that commeth to search for stollen goods, who having received a bribe afore-hand, searcheth every where but where it is, and so the man is never found out to be what he is: So a man having tasted the sweetnesse of a sinfull course (which pleasure bribes him) he is contented to search into every corner of his heart, and to try himselfe, as many doe, except there p. 210where his da…ling lust lyes; he sits upon that, and covers it willingly from his owne eyes, as Rachel did upon stolne gods, and so never findes out himselfe, 10. 3. 20. a man that hath a mind to sleepe quietly, will cause the curtaines to be drawne, and will let some light come in, but shuts out all that, or so much as may hinder him from sleeping: So a man having a mind to sleepe in some particular sinfull course at his ease, will search himselfe, and let some light come into his minde.

And hence many prophane persons, that know much, (their opinions are orthodox, their discourse Savoury) yet doe they know little of themselves, and of those sinnes and lusts that haunt them, which they must part with, because this light troubleth them▪ if hinders them from sleeping in their secure estate, and therefore they draw the curtaine here: Hence many men that live in those sinnes of the grossest usury, finding the gaine, and tasting the sweet of that sinne, will reade all bookes, goe to all those Ministers, p. 211they suppose, that hold it lawfull, and so pick up and gather reason to defend the lawfulnesse of the sinne, and so because they would not have it to be a sinne, finde out reasons whereby they thinke it no sinne; but the bottome is this, their will hath got the bribe, and now the understanding playes the lawyer, and hence men live in the most crying sinnes, and are sure to perish, because they will not know they are in an errour.

Secondly, when the will sets the understanding 2a worke to extenuate and lessen sinne: for many, when they see their sinne, yet make it small by looking at the false end of their opticke glasse; they thinke such small matters never make any breach betweene the Lord and their soules. Hence they say, the best man sinnes seven times a day, and who can say my heart is cleane? What is the reason that a child of God hath little peace many times after commission of small sinnes? Oh! it is because they see the horrible nature of the least sinne: small wrongs against so p. 212deare, so great a friend as the Lord is, it cuts their hearts; yet a carnall heart is never troubled for great sinnes, because they make a light matter of them.

3Thirdly, Wilfull ignorance of the horrible wrath of God. Hence men rush on in sinne, as the horse into the battell. Hence men never feare their estates, because they know not Gods wrath hanging over them. Coldest Snakes when they are frozen with cold, never sting nor hurt; one may carry a neast of them in his bosome: but bring them to the fire, then they hisse and sting: so sinne when it is brought neare Gods wrath, (that devouring fire) it makes men cry out of themselves, then I am undone, oh I am a lost creature; but being not thus heated, sinne never makes a man cry out of himselfe.

These are the causes why men are ignorant of their wofull, miserarable estate, which Ignorance is the first Rocke, or the first powder-plot p. 213that spoyles thousands. Yet, there are three more dangerous, because more secret.

Now followeth the second reson of mens ruine.The second Reason why men ruine thēselves. By reason of mans carnall securitie, whereby men cannot be affected with, nor so much as have hearts to desire to come out of their misery, when they know it: for if a mans minde understand his misery, yet if the heart be hard or sleepy, and not affected, loaden, wounded, humbled, and made to groane under it, he will never greatly care to come out of it, Isa. 29. 9, 10. Now this is the estate of many a soule, he doth know his misery, but by reason of the sleepy, secure, senseles spirit of slumber, he never feeles it, nor mournes under it, and so comes out of it.

Now the Reasons of this security are these.

Because God powres not out the full measure of his wrath upon men,Reas. 1. because hee kindles not the pile of wrath that lyes upon men, its reserved p. 214and concealed,Nahum 1. 2.Nah 1:2 not revealed from heaven, and so long, let God frowne, Ministers threaten, and smaller Judgements drop, yet they will never seeke shelter in Jesus Christ, but sleepe in their sinnes, untill God raine downe flouds of horrour, bloud, fire, untill Gods arrowes sticke in mens hearts, they will never seeke out of themselves unto Jesus Christ, Eccle. 8. 11. so long as Gods plagues were upon Phara…h, he giveth faire words, and Moses must be sent to pray for him: but when Gods hand is taken away, now Pharaohs heart is hardened. So long as Gods sword is in his scabberd, men have such stout hearts, that they will never yeeld; God must wound, and cut deep, and stab, and thrust to the very heart, else men will never yeeld, never awaken, till Gods fists be about mens eares, and he is dragging them to the stake; men will never awake and cry for a pardon and deliverance of their woefull estate.

Secondly,Reas. 2. because if they doe in part feele, and so feare Gods wrath, p. 215they put away the evill day farre from them, they hope they shall doe better hereafter, and repent some other time, and therefore they say, soule eate, drinke, follow thy sports, cups, queanes; thou hast a treasure of time which shall not be spent in many yeares, Isay 22. 12, 13. that looke as it is with the waxe▪ let it be of never so pliable a disposition, and the fire never so hot, yet if it be not brought neare the fire, and be held in the fire, it never m…lts, but still remaines hard: so it is here. Let a man or woman have never so gentle or pliable a nature, and let Gods wrath be never so hot and dreadfull in their Judgements, yet if they make not the day of wrath present to them, if they see it not ready every moment to light upon their hearts, they are never melted, but th…y remaine hard-hearted, secure, sleepy wretches, and never groane to come out of their wo…full estate; and this is the reason why many men, that have guil…y consoiences, thought they have many secret wishes and purposes to p. 216bee better, yet never cry out of themselves, nor ever seeke earnestly for mercy, till they lie upon their death-bed, and then, oh the promises that they ply God with! try me Lord, & restore me once more to my health, and life againe, and thou shalt see how thankfull I will be; because that now they apprehend wrath and misery neare unto them, Heb. 3. 13.

Thirdly,Reas. 3. Because they thinke they can beare Gods wrath, though they doe conceive it neare at hand, even at the very doores: men thinke not that Hell is so hot, nor the devill so black, nor God so terrible as in deede he is. And hence wee shall observe the Prophets present Gods wrath as a thing intolerable before the eyes of the people, that thereby they might quench all those cursed conceits of being able to beare Gods wrath, Nahum 1. 6. and hence we shall have many men desperately conclude, they will have their swinge in sinne, and if they perish they hope they shall be able to beare it, it is but a damning they thinke, and hence p. 217they goe on securely. O poore wretches! the devill scares and feares all the world, and at Gods wrath the devills quake, and yet secure men feare it not, they thinke hell is not so terrible a place.

Fourthly, because they know no 4better an estate: Hence though they feele their wofull and miserable condition, yet they desire not to come out of it. Although men finde hard lodging in the world, hard times, hard friends, hard hearts, yet they make a shift with what they finde in this miserable Inne, untill they come to Hell; for such a man pursued by outward miseries or inward troubles, there stayes. O miserable man, that makes shift till he come to Hell. They may heare of the happy estate of GODS people, but not knowing of it experimentally, they stay where they are, Ioh. 4. 14.

Take a Princes childe, and bring it up in a base house and place, it never aspires after a Kingdome or Crowne: So men, hatcht in this world, knowing p. 218no better an estate, never cast about them to get a better inheritance than that they scramble for here. Wives mourne for the long absence of their beloved Husbands, because they know them and their worth. God may absent himself from men, weeks, months, yeares, but men shed not one teare for it, because they never tasted the sweetnesse of his presence. It is strange to see men take more content in their cups and cards, pots and pipes, dogges and hawkes, than in the fellowship of God and Christ, in Word, in Prayer, in Meditation, which Ordinances are burdens and prisons unto them. What is the reason of it? Is there no more sweetnesse in the presence of Gods smiling in Christ, than in a filthy Whore? Yes, but they know not the worth, sweetnesse, satisfying goodnesse of a God; yet into fresh waters they will never returne, because now they taste a large difference of each estate: So it is here, if men did but once taste of the happinesse of Gods people, they would not for a thousand p. 219worlds be one halfe houre in their wild loose Sea agai… ▪ e.

Fifthly,Reas. 5. because if they doe know a better estate, yet their present pleasures, their sloth doth so bewitch them, and Gods denyals when they seeke unto him, doe so farre discourage them, that they sleepe still securely in that estate. A flothfull heart bewitched with present ease and pleasures and delights, considering many a teare, many a prayer must it make, many a night must it breake its sleepe, many a weary step must it take towards heaven and Christ, if ever it come there, growes discouraged and deaded, and hard-hearted in a sleepy estate, and had rather have a bird in the hand then two in the bush, Prov. 1. 32. Ier. 48. 11. The Israelites wished that they were at their Onyons and garlike againe in Egypt. Was there no Canaan? yes, but they wished thus because there were walls built up to heaven, and Giants sonnes of Anack in the Land, difficulties to overcome. O slothfull hearts! Secondly, because p. 220God sometime put them to straights, and denied them what they sought for, they were of such a waspish, teasty, sullen spirit, that because the Lord had them not alwayes on his knees, they would runne away: so many a man meets with sorrow enough in his sinfull, dropsie, drunken estate, he heares of heaven and a better estate; yet, why goes he to his lusts and flesh pots againe? Oh! because there are so many difficulties and blockes and hindrances in his way, and because they pray and finde not ease, therefore they eate, drinke, laugh, sport and sleepe in their miserable estate still, Matth. 7. 14. therefore men walke in the broad way, because the other way to life is straight and narrow, it is a plague, a burden, a prison to be so strict; men had rather sit almost an houre in the stockes, than be an houre at prayer; men had rather be damned at last, than sweat it out and runne through the race to receive a Crowne, and hence men remaine secure.

p. 221Sixthly,Reas. 6. because of the strange strong power of sin, which beares that sway over mens soules, that they must serve it; as prisoners stoope to their Jaylor; as souldiers that have taken their pay, their pleasure of sinne, must follow it as their Captaine, though they goe marching on to eternall ruine:Rom. 1. ult.Rom 1 nay though Doomes day should be to morrow, yet they must and will …erve their lusts. As the Sodomites when they were smitten with blindnesse, which tormented their eyes▪ as though they had beene pricked with thornes, for so the Hebrew word signifies▪ even when destruction was neare, they groped for the doore. Men cannot but sin though they perish for sinne; hence they remaine secure.

Seventhly,Reas. 7. Despaire of Gods mercy: hence, like Cain, men are Runnagates from the face of God; men thinke they shall never finde mercy when all is done: hence they grow desperately sinfull; like those Italian Senators, that despairing of their lives (when upon submission they had been p. 222promised their lives, yet) being …onscious of their villany, made a curious banquet, & at the end of it, every man dranke up his glasse of poyson, & killed himselfe: so men feeling such horrible hard hearts, and being privie to such notorious sinnes, they cast away lives, and heaven, and soules for lust, and so perish wofully, because they lived desperately, and so securely.

Eighthly,Reas. 8. Because men nourish a blinde, false, flattering hope of Gods mercy: hence many knowing and suspecting that all is naught with them, yet having some hope they may be in a good estate, and God may love them; hence they lie downe securely, and rest in their flattering hope. Hence observe, those people that feldome come to a conclusion, to a point, that either they are in the state of grace, or out of it, that never come to be affected, but remaine secure in their condition; they commonly grow to this desperate conclusion; that they hope God will be mercifull unto them; if not, they cannot helpe it: like the man that p. 223had on his Target the picture of God and the Devill: under the first he writ, si tu non vis, if thou wilt not; under the other he writ, ipse rogitat, here's one will.

Ninthly,Reas. 9. because men bring not their hearts under the hammer of Gods word to be broken, they never bring their consciences to be cut. Hence they goe on still securely with festered consciences. Men put themselves above the word, and their hearts above the hammer, they come not to have the Minister to humble them, but to judge of him, or to pick some pretty fine thing out of the word, and so remaine secure sotts all their dayes: for if ever thy heart be broken, and thy conscience be awaked, the word must doe it: but people are so Sermo… trodden, that their hearts, like footpaths, grow hard by the word.

Tenthly,Reas. 10 because men consider not of Gods wrath daily, nor the horrible nature of sinne; men chew not these pills: hence they never come to be affected nor awakened.

p. 224Awaken therefore all you secure creatures;Vse. feele your misery, that so you may get out of it. Dost thou know thine estate is naught, and that thy condemnation will be fearefull, if ever thou dost perish; and is thine heart secretly secure, so damnably dead, so desperately hard, that thou hast no heart to come out of it: what… no sigh, no teares? canst thou carry all thy sinnes upon thy backe, like Sampson the gates of the Citie, and make a light matter of them? Dost thou see hell fire before thee, and yet wilt venture? art thou worse than a beast which we cannot beare nor drive into the fire, if there be any way to escape: oh get thine heart to lament & mourne under thy miseries, who knowes then but the Lord may pitty thee? But oh hard heart! thou canst mourne for losses and crosses, burning of goods and houses, yet though God be lost, and his image burnt downe, and all is gone, thou canst not mourne. If thine heart were truely affected, the pillow would be washed with thy teares, and the p. 225wife in thy bosome would be witnesse to thine heart-breakings in mid-night for those sinnes which have grieved the spirit of God many a time, thou couldest not sleepe quietly, nor comfortably without assurance. If you were sicke to death, Physitians should heare how you doe; and if you were humbled, we should have you in the bitternesse of your spirits cry out, What shall we doe? but know it, thou must mourne here or in hell. If God broke Davids bones for his adultery, and the Angels backes for their pride; the Lord, if ever he saves thee, will breake thine heart too.

Quest. Quest.But thou wilt say, how shall I doe to get mine heart affected with my misery?

Answ. Answ. 1. How to get a broken heart.Take a full view of thy misery. 2. Take speciall notice of the Lords readinesse and willingnesse to receive thee yet unto mercy: for, two things harden the heart. 1. false hope: whereby a man hopes, he is not so bad, as indeed he is. …. No hope; whereby a man when he seeth himselfe so notoriously p. 226bad, thinkes there is no willingnesse in the Lord to pardon or receive such a monster of men to mercy; and if neither the hammer can breake thy stony heart, nor the Sunshine of mercy melt it, thou hast an heart worse than the Devill, and art a spectacle of the greatest misery. 1. In regard of sinne, 2. in regard of Gods wrath.

First, in regard of sinne. Thou hast sinned, and that grievously against a great God, thou makest no great matter of this: No, but though it be no loade to thee, it's a loade on the Lords heart, Isa. 1. 24. and time will come he will make the whole sinfull world by rivers of fire and bloud to know what an evill it is.

For 1. In every sin thou dost strike God, and fling a dagger at the heart of God. 2. In every sin thou dost spight against God: for if there were but one onelyonly thing wherein a man could doe his friend a displeasure, was not here spight seene if he did that thing? Now tell me, hath not the Lord beene a good friend unto thee? Tell mee, p. 227wherein hath hee grieved thee? and tell me, in what one thing canst thou please the devill, and doe God a displeasure, but by sinne? yet O hard heart thou makest nothing of it; but consider thirdly, in every sin thou dost disthrone God, and setteth thy selfe above God: for in every sinne, this question is put, whose will shall be done, Gods will or mans? Now man by sinne sets up his owne will above the Lords, and so kicks God, (blessed for ever, adored of millions of Saints and Angels) as filth under his feet. What, will this breake your hearts?

Consider then of Gods wrath; the certainty of it, the unsupportablenesse of it, how that dying in thy sinnes, and secure estate, it shall fall; for when men cry,1 Thes. 5. 3, 4.1 Thess 5:31 Thess 5:4 Peace, Peace, then commeth sudden destruction at unawares; pray therefore to God to reveale this to thee, that thine heart may breake under it. Secondly, consider of the Lords mercy and readinesse to save thee,2 Cor. 5. 19.2 Cor 5:19 who hath prepared mercy, and in…reates p. 228thee to take it, and waiteth every day for thee to that end.

The third Reason of mans ruine is,3. Generall Reason of mans ruine. that carnall confidence, whereby men seeke to save themselves, and to scramble out of their miserable estate by their owne duties and performances, when they doe feele themselves miserable: the soule doth as those Hos. 5. 13. men when they be wounded and troubled, they never look after Jesus Christ, but goe to their owne waters to heale themselves, like hunted Harts when the arrow is in them, Rom. 9. 31, 32.

For the opening of this point, I shall shew you these two things.

1. Wherein this resting in Duties appeares.

2. Why doe men rest in themselves.

First,Wherein Mens Resting in Duties appeares. this resting in Duties appeares in these Eleven degrees.

1. The soule of a poore sinner, if ignorantly bred and brought up, rests confidently in superstitious vanities. p. 229Aske a devout Papist, how he hopes to be saved; he will answer, By his good workes. But enquire further; what are these good workes: why, for the most part superstitious ones of their owne inventions (for the Crow thinkes her owne bird fairest) as whipping themselves, pilgrimage, fasting, mumbling over their Paternosters, bowing downe to Images and Crosses.

2. Now these being banished from 2the Church and Kingdome, then men stand upon their titular profession of the true Religion, although they be Devills incarnate in their lives. Looke up and down the Kingdome, you shall see some roaring, drinking, dicing, carding, whoring in Tavernes and blind Alehouses; others belching out their oathes, their mouthes ever casting out like raging Seas filthy frothy speeches: others, like Ismaels, scoffing at the best men, yet these are confident they shall be saved. Why, (they say) they are no Papists, hang them, they will die for their Religion, and rather p. 230burne than turne againe by the grace of God. Thus the Jewes boasted, they were Abrahams seede: Zeph. 3. 11.Zeph 3:11so our carnall people boast: Am not I a good Protestant? am I not baptized? doe I not live in the Church, and therefore resting here, hope to be saved? I remember a Judge, when one pleaded once with him for his life, that hee might not be hanged, because he was a Gentleman; he told him, that therefore hee should have the Gallowes made higher for him; so when thou pleadest, I am a Christian and a good Protestant (yet thou wilt drinke, and sweare, and whore, neglect prayer, and breake Gods Sabbath) and therefore thou hopest to be saved; I tell thee thy condemnation shall be greater, and thy plagues in hell the heavier.

33. If men have no peace here, then they fly to, and rest in the goodnesse of their insides: you shall have many a man, whom if you follow to his chamber you shall finde very devout, and they pray heartily for the mercy of God, and forgivenesse of sinnes: but p. 231follow them out of their Chambers, watch their discourses, you shall finde it frothy and vaine, and now and then powdered with faith and troth and obscene speeches. Watch them when they are crost, you shall see them as angry as Waspes, and swell like Turkies, and so spit out their venome like Dragons. Watch them in their journeyes, and you shall see them shoot into an Alehouse, and there swill… and swagger, and be familiar with the scumme of the countrey for prophanenesse, and halfe drunke too sometimes. Watch them on the Lords day, take them out of the Church once, and set aside their best clothes, they are the same then as at another time; and because they must not worke nor sport that day, they thinke they may with a good conscience sleepe the longer on the morning. Aske now such men how they hope to be saved, seeing their lives are so bad; they say, though they make not such shews, they know what good prayers they make in private, their hearts they say are good. I p. 232tell ye brethren, he that trusteth to his owne heart, and his good desires, and so resteth in them, is a foole. I have heard of a man that would haunt the Tavernes, and Theaters, and whorehouses at London all day, but he durst not goe forth without private prayer in the morning, and then would say at his departure; now devill doe thy worst, and so used his prayers (as many doe) only as charmes and spels against the poore weake cowardly devill, that they thinke dares not hurt them, so long as they have good hearts within them, and good prayers in the chamber; and hence they will goe neare to raile against the Preacher as an harsh Master, if he doe not comfort them with this, that God accepts of their good desires.

44. If their good hearts cannot quiet them, but conscience tells them, they are unsound without, and rotten at core within, then men fall upon reformation; they will leave their who…ing, drinking, cozening, gaming, company-keeping, swearing, and such like roaring p. 233sinnes, and now all the Countrey saith, he is become a new man, and he himselfe thinkes he shall be saved, 2 Pet. 2. 20. they escape the pollutions of the world, as swine that are escaped and washed from outward filth, yet the swinish nature remaines still, like Mariners that are going to some dangerous place, ignorantly, if they meet with stormes, they goe not backward, but cast out their goods that indanger t…eir ship, and so goe forward still: so many a man going towards hell, is forced to cast out his lusts and sinnes, but he goeth on in the same way still for all that. The wildest beasts (as Staggs) if they be kept waking from sleepe long, will grow tame: so conscience giving a man no rest for some sinnes he liveth in, he groweth tame; He that was a wild Gentleman before, remaines the same man still, onelyonly he is made tame now (that is) civill and smooth in his whole course, and hence they rest in reformation: which reformation is commonly but of some troublesome sinne, and it is because they thinke it is p. 234better following their trade of sinne at another market, and hence some men will leave their drinking and whoring, and turne covetous, because there is more gaine at that market; sometimes it is because sinne hath left them, as an old man.

55. If they can have no rest here, they get into another starting hole, they goe to their Humiliations, Repentings, Teares, Sorrowes, and Confessions. They heare a man cannot be saved by reforming his life, unlesse he come to afflict his soule too; he must sorrow and weepe here, or else cry out in hell hereafter. Hereupon they betake themselves to their sorrowes, teares, confession of sinnes, and now the winde is downe, and the tempest is over, and they make themselves safe, Matth. 11. 21. They would have repented, that is, the Heathen, as Beza speakes, when any wrath was kindled from Heaven, they would goe to their sackcloth and sorrowes, and so thought to pacifie Gods anger againe, and here they rested: so it is with many a man; many p. 235people have sicke fits and qualmes of conscience, and then they doe as Crowes that give themselves a vomit by swallowing downe some stone when they are sicke, and then they are well againe; so when men are troubled for their sinnes, they will give themselves, a vomit of prayer, a vomit of confession, and humiliation, Isa. 58. 5. Hence many when they can get no good by this physicke, by their sorrowes, and teares, cast off all againe; for making these things their God, and their Christ, they forsake them when they cannot save them; Mat. 3. 14. more are driven to Christ by the sense of the burden of an hard, dead, blind, filthy heart, than by the sense of sorrowes, because a man rests in the one, viz. in sorrowes most commonly, but tr…mbles and flyes out of himselfe when he feeles the other: thus men rest in their repentance, and therefore Austin hath a pretty speech which sounds ha…sh, that Repentance damneth more than sin; meaning that thousands did perish by resting in it: and hence p. 236wee see among many people, if they have large affections, they thinke they are in good favour; if they want them, they thinke then they are cast-awayes, when they cannot mourne, nor be affected as once they were, because they rest in them.

66. If they have no rest here, then they turne morall men, that is, strict in all the duties of the morall law, which is a greater matter than reformation or humiliation, that is, they grow very just and square in their dealings with men, and exceeding strict in the duties of the first Table towards God; as fasting, prayer, hearing, reading, observing the Sabbath, and thus the Pharisees lived, and hence they are called the strict sect of the Pharisees. Take heede you mistake me not, I speake not against strictnesse, but against resting in it, for except your righteousnesse exceed theirs, you shall not enter into the Kingdome of Heaven. You shall finde these men fly from base persons and places like the Pesthouses, commend the best bookes, cry downe the p. 237sinnes of the time, and cry against civill or morall men (the eye sees not it selfe) and cry up zeale and forwardnesse. Talke with him about many morall duties, that are to be done towards God or man, he will speak well about the excellency and necessity of it, because his trade and skill whereby he hopes to get his living and earne eternall life, lieth there; but speake about Christ, and living by faith in him and from him, & bottoming the soule upon the Promises (peeces of Evangelicall righteousnesse) he that is very skilfull in any point of controversie, is as ignorant almost as a beast when he is examined here; hence if Ministers preach against the sinnes of the time, they cōmend it for a speciall Sermon, (as it happily deserves too) but let him speake of any spirituall inward soule-working point, they goe away, and say, he was in their judgement confused and obscure, for their parts they understood them not. (Beloved) pictures are pretty things to look on, and that's all the goodnesse of them; so these men p. 238are (as Christ looked on and loved the naturall yong man in the Gospel) and that's all their excellency. You know, in Noah's floud, all that were not in the Arke, though they did climbe and get to the top of the tallest mountaines, they were drowned: so labour to climbe never so high in moralitie, and the duties of both Tables, if thou goest not into Gods Arke, the Lord Jesus Christ, thou art sure to perish eternally.

77. If they have no rest here in their moralitie, they grow hot within, and turne marvellous zealous for good causes and courses, and there they stay and warme themselves at their owne fire:Rom. 2. 10Rom 2:10 thus Paul, Philip. 3. 6. was zealous and there rested. They will not live as many doe, like snailes in their shells, but rather than they will be damned for want of doing, they are content to give away their estate, children, any thing almost to get pardon for the sinne of their soule, Mich. 6. 7.

88. If they find no helpe from hence, p. 239but are forced to see and say, when they have done all, they are unprofitable servants… and they sinne in all that which they doe; then they rest in that which is like unto Evangelicall Obedience, they thinke to please God by mourning for their failings in their good duties, d…siring to be better, and promising for the time to come to be so, and therein rest, Deut. 5. 29.

9. If they feele a want of all these, 9then they dig within themselves for power to leave sinne, power to be more holy and humble, and so thinke to worke out themselves in time, out of this▪ estate, and so they digge for pearles in their owne dunghills, and will not be beholding to the Lord Jesus, to live on him in the want of all; they thinke to set up themselves out of their owne stock without Jesus Christ, and so, as the Prophet Hosea speakes 14. 3, 4. thinke to save themselves by their riding on Horses, (that is) by their owne abilities.

10. If they feele no helpe here, then 10they goe unto Christ for grace and p. 240power to leave sinne and doe better, whereby they may save themselves; and so they live upon Ch…ist, that they may live of themselves; they goe unto Christ, they get not into Christ, Psal. 8. 34, 35. like hirelings that goe for power to doe their worke, that they may earne their wages: A child of God conten…s himselfe with, and lives upon the inheritance it selfe, the Lord in his free mercy hath given him. But now wee shall see many poore Christians that runne in the very roade, the Papists devoutly goe to H…ll in.

First, the Papist will confesse his misery, that he is (and all men are) by nature a child of wrath, and under the power of sinne and Satan.

Secondly, they hold Christ is the onelyonly Saviour.

Thirdly, that this Salvation is not by any Righteousnesse in a Christ, but Righteousnesse from a Christ, onelyonly by giving a man power to doe; and then dipping mens doings in his bloud, he merits their life. Thus the wisest p. 241and devoutest of them professe, as I am able to manifest; just so doe many Christians live. First, They feele themselves full of sinne, and are sometimes tyred and weary of their lives, for their vile hearts, and they finde no power to helpe themselves. Secondly, Hereupon hearing, that onelyonly Christ can save them, they goe unto Christ to remove these sinnes that tyre them and load them, that hee would enable them to doe better than formerly. Thirdly, If they get these sinnes subdued and removed, and if they finde power to doe better, than they hope they shall be saved. Whereas thou mayest be damned and goe to the devill at last, although thou dost escape all the pollutions of the world, & that not from they selfe and strength, but from the knowledge of Jesus Christ, 2 Pet. 2. 20. I say woe to you for ever, if you die in this estate, it is with our Christians in this case, as it is with the Ivy, which claspes and groweth about the tree, and draws sap from the tree, but it growes not one with the p. 242tree, because it is not ingrafted into the tree: so many a soule commeth to Christ, to suck juice from Christ to maintaine his owne berries, (his owne stocke of grace,) alas, he is but Ivy, he is no member or branch of this tree, and hence he never groweth to be one with Christ. 2. Now the reasons why men rest in their duties are these.

First,Why men doe rest in their good duties. because it's naturall to a man out of Christ to doe so. Adam and all his posterity was to be saved by his doing,Reas. 1. Doe this and live, worke and here is the wages; winne life and weare it: Hence all his posteritie seekes to this day to be saved by doing; like father, like sonne. Now to come out of all duties truely to a Christ, hath not so much as a coate in innocent, much lesse corrupted nature; hence men seek to themselves: now as it is with a bankrupt, when his stocke is spent and his estate crackt, before he will turne Prentice, or live upon another, hee will turne Pedler of small wares, and so follow his old trade with a lesse stocke: so men naturally follow their p. 243old trade of doing, and hope to get their living that way: and hence men having no experience of trading with Christ by faith, live of themselves. Sampson, when all his strength was lost, would goe to shake himselfe as at other times; so when mens strength is lost, and God and grace is lost, yet men will goe and try how they can live by shifts and working for themselves still.

Secondly,Reas. 2. because men are ignorant of Jesus Christ and his righteousnesse; hence men cannot goe unto him, because they see him not, hence they shift as well as they can for themselves by their duties, Iohn 4. 14. men seeke to save thēselves by their own swimming, when they see no cable cast out to helpe them.

Thirdly,Reas. 3. because this is the easiest way to comfort the heart, and pacifie conscience, and to please God as the soule thinkes; because by this meanes a man goes no further than himselfe. Now in forsaking all duties, a soule goeth to heaven quite out of himselfe, and there he must waite many a yeare, p. 244and that for a little it may be. Now if a fainting man have Aquavitae at his beds head, he will not knocke up the shopkeeper for it. Men that have a Balsome of their owne to heale them, will not goe to the Physitian.

Fourthly,Reas. 4. because by vertue of these duties a man may hide his sin, and live quietly in his sin, yet be accounted an honest man: as the whore in the Pro. 7. 15, 16. having performed her vowes, can intice without suspition of men, or check of conscience; so the Scribes and Pharisees were horribly covetous, but their long prayers covered their deformities, Matth. 23. 14. and hence men set their duties at a higher rate than they are worth, thinking they shall save them, because they are so usefull to them. Good duties, like new apparrell on a man pursued with Hue and cry of conscience, keepe him from being knowne.

Take heede of resting in duties;Vse 1. Good duties are mens money, without which they thinke themselves poore and miserable; but take heed that you p. 245and your money perish not together, Gal. 5. 3. The paths to Hell be but two. The first is the path of sinne, which is a dirty way. Secondly, the path of Duties, which (rested in) is but a clearer way. When the Israelites were in distresse, Iudg. 10. 14. The Lord bids them goe to the Gods they served: so when thou shalt lie howling on thy death-bed, the Lord will say; Goe unto the good prayers and performances you have made, and the teares you have shed. Oh they will be miserable comforters at that day.

Object. Ob.But I thinke thou wilt say, no true Christian man hopes to be saved by his good workes and duties, but onelyonly by the mercy of God and merits of Christ.

Answ. Ans.It is one thing to trust to be saved by duties, another thing to rest in duties. A man trusts unto them, when he is of this opinion, that onelyonly good duties can save him. A man rests in duties, when he is of this opinion, that onelyonly Christ can save him, but in his practise he goeth about to p. 246save himselfe. The wisest of the Papists are so at this day, and so are our common Protestants. And this is a great subtilty of the heart, that is, when a man thinkes he cannot be saved by his good works and duties, but onelyonly by Christ: he then hopeth, because he is of this opinion, that when he hath done all, he is an unprofitable servant: (which is onelyonly an act or worke of the Judgement informed aright) that therfore, because he is of this opinion, he shall be saved.

But, because it is hard for to know when a man rests in duties, & few men finde themselves guiltie of this sinne, which ruines so many: I will shew two things.

1. The signes of a man resting in duties.

2. The insufficiency of all duties to save men. That so those that be found guilty of this sin, may not goe on in it.

First,Signes of mens resting in Duties. for the signes whereby a man may certainly know, when he rests in his duties, which if he doe, (as few professors especially, but they doe) he perisheth eternally.

p. 247First,Signe 1. Those that never yet saw they rested in them, they that never found it an hard matter to come out of their duties. For it's most naturall for a man to sticke in them, because nature sets men upon duties; hence it is a hard matter to come out of resting in duties. For two things keepe a man from Christ.

1.2 things keepe us from Christ. Sinne; 2. Selfe. Now as a man is broken off from sinne by seeing and feeling it, and groaning under the power of it: so is a man broken from himselfe. For men had rather doe any thing than come unto Christ, there is such a deale of selfe in them; therefore if thou canst not tell the time when thou didst rest in thy duties, and then diddest groane to be delivered from these intanglements, (I meane not from the doing of them, this is familisme, and prophanenesse, but from resting in the bare performance of them,) thou dost relye upon thy duties to this day.

These rest in duties,Signe 2. that prize the bare performance of Duties wonderfully; for those duties that carry thee out of thy selfe unto Christ, make thee p. 248to prize Christ. Now tell me, dost thou glory in thy selfe? now I am some-body. I was ignorant, forgetfull, hard-hearted, now I understand and remember better, and can sorrow for my sinnes; if thou dost rest here, thy duties never carried thee further than thy selfe. Dost thou thinke after that thou hast prayed with some life, now I have done very well, and now thou dost verily thinke (meaning for thy duties) the Lord will save thee though thou never come to Christ, & sayest as he in another case; now I hope the Lord will doe good to me, seeing I have got a Priest into mine house, Iudg. 17. 13. Dost thou inhance the price of duties thus, that thou dost doate on them, then I doe pronounce from God, thou dost rest in them:Phil. 3. 8.Phil 3:8 these things (saith Paul) I accounted gaine, (that is, before his conversion to Christ, he prized them exceedingly) but now I account them losse: and this is the reason why a childe of God commonly after all his prayers, teares and confessions, doubts much of Gods love towards him? whereas another p. 249man that falleth short of him, never questioneth his estate; the first seeth much rottennesse and vilenesse in his best duties, and so judgeth meanly of himselfe: the other ignorant of the vilenesse of them, prizeth them and esteemeth highly of them, and setting his corne at so high a price, he may keepe them to himselfe; the Lord never accepteth them, nor buyeth them at so high a rate.

Thirdly,Signe 3. those that never came to be sensible of their poverty & utter emptinesse of all good: for so long as a man hath a penny in his purse (that is) feeles any good in himselfe, he will never come a begging unto Jesus Christ, and therefore rests in himselfe: Now didst thou never feele thy selfe in this manner poore, viz. I am as ignorant as any beast, as vile as any devill; O Lord, what a neast and litter of sin and rebellion lurks in my heart. I once thought at least, mine heart and desires were good, but now I feele no spirituall life. Oh! dead heart, I am the poorest, vilest, basest, and blindest creature that p. 250ever lived. If thou doest not thus feele thy selfe poore, thou never camest out of thy duties, For when the Lord bringeth any man to Christ, he bringeth him empty, that so he may make him be holding to Christ for every farthing token.Isa. 66. 2.Isa 66:2

Fourthly,Signe 4. those that gaine no Evangelicall righteousnesse by duties, re…t in duties; I say, Evangelicall righteousnes, that is, more prizing of acquaintance, with desire after, loving & delighting in union with the Lord Jesus Christ: for a morall man may grow in legall righteousnesse, (as the stony and thorny ground seede, sprang up and increased much, and came neere unto maturitie,) and yet rest in duties all this while. For, as it is with tradesmen, they rest in their buying and selling, though they make no gaine of their trading: now Jesus Christ is a Christians gaine, Phil. 1. 21. and hence a childe of God askes himselfe after Sermon, after prayer, after Sacrament, what have I gained of Christ? have I got more knowledge of Christ, more admiring of the Lord Iesus? Now a carnall heart that rests in his duties, asketh p. 251onelyonly what he hath done, as the Pharisee, I thanke God I am not as other men, I fast twice a weeke, I give almes, and the like, and thinkes verily he shall be saved, because he prayes, and because he heares, and because he reformes, and because he sorrowes for his sinnes, that is, not because of the gaining of Christ in a dutie, but because of his naked performance of the duty, and so they are like that man, that I have heard of, that thought verily he should be rich, because he had got a wallet to beg: so men, because they performe duties, thinke verily they shall be saved. No such matter, let a man have a bucket made of gold, doth he thinke to get water, because he hath a bucket? No, no, he must let it downe into the well & draw up water with it: so must thou let downe all thy duties into Christ, & draw life and light from his fulnesse, else though thy duties be golden duties, thou shalt perish without Christ. When a man hath bread in his wallet, and got water in his bucket, he may boldly say, so long as these last, I shall p. 252not …amish: so mayst thou say, when thou hast found and got Christ, in the performance of any duty, so long as Christs life lasteth, I shall live, as long as he hath any wisdome or power, so long shall I be directed and enabled in well doing.

Fifthly,Signe 5. if thy duties make thee sin more boldly, thou dost then rest in duties; for these duties which carry a man out of himselfe unto Christ, ever fetch power against sinne; but duties that a man rests in, arme him and fence him in his sinne, Isa. 1. 14. A cart that hath no wheeles to rest on, can hardly be drawne into the dirt, but one that hath wheeles, commeth loaded through it; so a child of God that hath no wheeles, no duties to rest upon, cannot willingly be drawne into sinne: but another man, though he be loaden with sinne (even sometimes against his conscience) yet having duties to beare him up, goeth merrily on in a sinfull course, & makes no bones of sinne; when we see a base man revile a great Prince, & strike him, we say, surely he durst not doe it, unlesse p. 253he had some body to beare him out in it, that he rests and trusts unto: so when wee see men sinne against the great God, we conceive, certainly they durst not doe it, if they had not some duties to beare them out in it, and to encourage them in their way, that they trust unto.

For, take a prophane man, what makes him drink, sweare, cozen, game, whore? Is there no God to punish? Is there no hell hot enough to torment? are there no plagues to confound him? yes, why …inneth he then so? Oh! he prayeth to God for forgivenesse, and sorroweth, and repents in secret (as he …aith) and this beares him out in his lewd pranks.

Take a morall man, he knowes he hath his failings and his sinnes, as the best have, and is overtaken sometimes as the best are; why doth he not remove these sinnes then? He confesseth them to God every morning when he riseth; why is he not more humbled under his sinne then? the reason is, he constantly observeth morning and evening prayer, & then he craves forgivenesse p. 254for his failings, by which course he hopes he makes his peace with God, and hence he sinneth without seare, and riseth out of his falls into sinne without sorrow. And thus they see and maintaine their sinnes by their duties, and therefore rest in duties.

Sixthly,Signe 6. those that see little of their vile hearts by duties, rest in their duties: For if a man be brought nearer to Christ, and to the light, by duties, he will spy out more moats; for the more a man participates of Christ, his health and life, the more he feeleth the vilenesse and sicknesse of sinne.Rom. 7.Rom 7 As Paul when he rested in his duties before his conversion, before that the Law had humbled him, he was alive, that is, he thought himselfe a sound man, because his duties covered his sinnes, like fig-leaves. Therefore ask thine own heart, if it be troubled sometimes for sinne, and if after thy praying and sorrowing thou doest grow well, and thinkest thy selfe safe, and feelest not thy selfe more vile. If it be thus, I tell thee, thy duties be but fig-leaves to cover thy nakednesse, p. 255and the Lord will find thee out, and unmaske thee one day, and woe to thee, if thou dost perish here.

Secondly,The insufficiency of any dutie to save a man. Therefore behold the insufficiency of all duties to save us; Which will appeare in these three things, which I speake that you may learne hereafter never to rest in duties.

First, Consider thy best duties are tainted, poysoned, and mingled with some sinne, and therefore are most odious in the eyes of an holy God, (nakedly & barely considered in themselves) for if the best actions of Gods people be filthy, as they come from them, then to be sure, all wicked mens actions are much more filthy & polluted with sin: but the first is true,Isay 6. 6.Isa 6:6 All our righteousnesses are as filthy ragges; for as the fountaine is, so is the streame; but the fountaine of all good actions, (that is the heart) is mingled partly with sin, partly with grace, therfore every action participates of some sin, which sins are daggers at Gods heart, even when a man is praying and begging for his life, therefore there is no hope to be saved by duties.

p. 2562Secondly, Suppose thou couldest performe them without sinne, yet thou couldest not hold out in doing so, I say 40. 6. All flesh and the glory thereof is but grasse. So thy best actions would soone wither, if they were not perfect: and if thou canst not persevere in performing all duties perfectly, thou art for ever undone, though thou shouldest doe so for a time; live like an Angel, shine like a Sunne, and at thy last gaspe have but an idle thought, commit the least sin, that one rocke will sinke thee downe even in the haven, though never so richly loaden; one sin, like a pen-knife at the heart, will stab thee; one sinne, like a little fire-stick in the thatch, will burne thee; one act of treason will hang thee, though thou hast lived never so devoutly before, Ezek. 18. 24.Gal. 3. 10.Gal 3:10 For it's a crooked life, when all the parts of the line of thy life, be not straight before almighty God,

3Thirdly, suppose thou shouldest persevere, yet it's cleare, thou hast sinned grievously already, and dost thou think thine obedience for the time to come p. 257can satisfie the Lord for all those Rents behind, for all those sinnes past? as can a man that payes his Rent honestly every yeare, satisfie hereby for the old rent not payed in twenty yeares? all thy obedience is a new debt, which cannot satisfie for debts past. Indeed men may forgive wrong and debts because they be but finite, but the least sin is an infinite evill, and therefore God must be satisfied for it. Men may remit debts, and yet remaine men; but the Lord having said, the soule that sinneth shall die, and his truth being himselfe, he cannot remaine God, if he forgive it without satisfaction. Therfore duties are but rotten crutches for a soule to rest upon.

But to what end should we use any duties?Obj. cannot a man be saved by his good prayers, nor sorrowes, nor repentings? what should wee pray any more then? Let us cast off all duties, if all are to no purpose to save us. As good play for nothing as worke for nothing.

Though thy good duties cannot save thee,Ans. yet thy bad workes will damne thee. Thou art therefore not to p. 258cast off the duties, but thy resting in these duties.Good duties not to be cast off, but our resting upon them. Thou art not to cast them away, but to cast them downe at the feet of Jesus Christ, as they did their crownes, Rev. 4. 10, 11. Saying, if there be any good or graces in these duties, it's thine Lord, for it is the Princes favour that exalts a man, not his owne gifts; they came from his good pleasure.

But thou wilt say;Ob. to what end should I performe duties, if I cannot be saved by them?

For these three ends.Ans.

1.Vse 1. 1. To carry thee to the Lord Jesus the onelyonly Saviour, Heb. 7. 25. he onelyonly is able to save (not duties) all that come unto God (that is, in the use of means,) by him: heare a Sermon to carry thee to Jesus Christ: Fast and pray, and get a full tide of affections in them to carry thee to the Lord Jesus Christ, (that is,) to get a more love to him, more acquaintance with him, more union with him: so sorrow for thy sins, that thou mayest be more fitted for Christ, that thou mayest prize Christ the more; use thy duties, as Noah's dove did her p. 259wings, to carry thee to the Arke of the Lord Jesus Christ, where onelyonly there is rest. If shee had never used her wings, shee had fallen in the waters: so if thou shalt use no duties, but cast them all off, thou art sure to perish; Or as it is with a poore man that is to goe over a great water for a treasure on the other side, though he cannot fetch the boate, he calls for it; and though there be no treasure in the boate, yet he useth the boate to carry him over to the treasure: so Christ is in heaven, and thou on earth, he doth not come to thee, and thou canst not goe to him; now call for a boate, though there is no grace, no good, no salvation in a pithlesse dutie, yet use it to carry thee over to the treasure the Lord Jesus Christ. When thou comest to heare, say, Have over Lord by this Sermon. When thou comest to pray, say, Have over Lord by this prayer to a Saviour. But this is the misery of people, like foolish lovers, when they are to woe for the Lady, they fall in love with her handmaid that is onelyonly to leade them to her: so p. 260men fall in love with, and doate upon their owne duties, and rest contented with the naked performance of them, which are onelyonly handmaids to leade the soule unto the Lord Jesus Christ.

Secondly,Vse 2. use duties as evidences of Gods everlasting love to you when you be in Christ; for the graces and duties of Gods people, although they be not causes, yet they be tokens and pledges of salvation to one in Christ: they doe not save a man, but onelyonly accompany & follow such a man as shall be saved, Heb. 6. 9. Let a man boast of his Ioyes, feelings, gifts, spirit, grace, if he walks in the commission of any one sin, or the om…ssion of any one knowne duty, or in the slovenly ill favoured performance of duties, this man, I say, can have no assurance without flattering of himselfe, 2 Pet. 1. 8, 9, 10. Duties therefore being evidences and pledges of salvation, use them to that end, and make much of them therefore, as a man that hath faire evidence for his Lordship, because he did not purchase his Lordship, will he therefore cast it away? p. 261no, no, because it is an evidence to assure him that it is his owne, and so to defend him against all such as seeke to take it from him, he will carefully preserve the same: so because duties do not save thee, wilt thou cast away good duties? No, for they are evidences (if thou art in Christ) that the Lord and mercy is thine owne. Women will not cast away their love-tokens, although they are such things, as did not purchase or merit the love of their husbāds, but because they are tokens of his love, therfore they will keep them safe.

That God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ may be honoured by the performance of these duties,Vse 3. therefore use them: Christ shed his bloud, that he might purchase unto himselfe a people zealous of good workes, Tit. 2. 14. not to save our soules by them, but to honour him. Oh! let not the bloud of Christ be shed in vaine. Grace & good duties are a Christians Crowne; it is sin onelyonly makes a man base: now shall a King cast away his Crowne, because he bought not his Kingdome by it? p. 262No, because it is his Ornament and glory to weare it, when he is made a King; so I say unto thee, it's better that Christ should be honoured, than thy soule saved; and therefore performe duties, because they honour the Lord Jesus Christ. Thus use thy duties, but rest not in duties; nay, goe out of duties, & match thy soule to the Lord Jesus: take him for better & for worse, so live in him and upon him all thy dayes.

Fourthly,4 Generall reason of mans ruine. By reason of mans headstrong Presumption or false faith, whereby men seeke to save themselves by catching hold on Christ, when they see an insufficiency in all duties to helpe them, and themselves unworthy of mercy. For this is the last & most dangerous rock that these times are split upon. Men make a bridge of their own to carry them to Christ; I meane, they looke not after faith, wrought by an omnipotent power, which the eternall Spirit of the Lord Jesus must worke in them,Eph. 1. 19.Eph 1:19 but they cōtent themselves with a faith of their own forging and framing, and hence they thinke verily and beleeve, p. 263that Christ is their sweet Saviour, and so doubt not but they are safe, when there is no such matter, but even as dogs they snatch away childrens bread, and shall be shut out of doores, (out of heaven hereafter for ever) for their labour.

All men are of this opinion, that there is no salvation, but by the merits of Jesus Christ; and because they hold fast this opinion, therefore they thinke they hold fast Iesus Christ in the hand of faith, and so perish by catching at their owne catch, and hanging on their owne fancy and shadow. Some others catch hold of Christ before they come to feele the want of Faith and abilitie to beleeve, and catching hold on him (like dust on a mans coate whom God will shake off, or like burrs and bryers cleaving to ones garment, which the Lord will trample under foot) now they say they thanke God, they have got comfort by this means, and though God killeth them, yet they will trust unto him, Mich. 3. 11.

It is in this respect a harder matter to p. 264convert a man in England than in India, for there they have no such shifts and forts against our Sermons, to say they beleeve in Christ already, as most amongst us doe: wee cannot wrap off mens fingers from catching hold on Christ before they be fit for him; like a company of theeves in the street, you shall see an hundred hands scrambling for a jewell that is fallen there, that have least, nay nothing to doe with it. Every man saith almost, I hope Christ is mine, I put my whole trust and confidence in him, and will not be beaten from this. What, must a man despaire? must not a man trust unto Christ? thus, men will hope and trust, though they have no ground, no graces to prove they may lay hold and claime unto Christ. This hope skared out of his wits damnes thousands, for I am perswaded if men did see themselves Christlesse creatures, as well as sinfull creatures, they would cry out, Lord, what shall I doe to be saved?

True faith is a precious faith, 2 Pet. 1. 2. precious things cost us much: & we set p. 265them at an high rate; if thy Faith be so, it hath cost thee many a prayer, many a sob, many a salt teare. But ask most men how they came by their faith in Christ? they say, very easily: when the Lyon sleepes a man may lye and sleepe by it, but when it awakens, woe to that man that doth so: so while God is silent and patient, thou mayest befoole thy selfe with thinking thou dost trust unto God: but woe to thee when the LORD appeares in his wrath, as one day he will; for by vertue of this false faith, men sinning, take Christ as a dish-clout to wipe them cleane againe, and that's all the use they have of this faith. They sin indeede, but they trust unto Christ for his mercy, and so lye still in their sinnes: God will revenge with bloud and fire and plagues this horrible contempt from heaven.

Hence many of you trust unto Christ, as the Apricock tree that leanes against the wall, but it's fast rooted in the earth: so you leane upon Christ for salvation, but you are rooted in the world, rooted in your pride, rooted in your filthinesse p. 266still. Woe to you if you perish in this estate, God will hew you downe as fuell for his wrath, what ever mad hope you have to be saved by Christ. This therefore I proclaime from the God of Heaven to you. 1. you that never felt your selves as unable to beleeve as a dead man to raise himselfe, you have as yet no faith at all. 2. You that would get faith, first must feele your inability to beleeve; and fetch not this slip out of thine own garden: it must come downe from Heaven to thy soule, if ever thou partakest thereof.

Other things I should have spoken of this large subject, but I am forced here to end abruptly; The Lord lay not this sin to their charge, who have stopped my mouth, labouring to withhold the truth in unrighteousnesse. And blessed be the good God, who hath stood by his unworthy servant thus long, inabling him to leade you so farre, as to shew you the rockes and dangers of your passage to another world.

FINIS.

End of the text · Thomas Shepard, The Sincere Convert (1641)