A Christian Library, Section 12 – Section 18
Sect. XII.
And as the healthiest body is subject to the mortallest disease; so there is no sin so odious, unto which of our selves we are not sufficiently inclinable. For Original sin, in which we are all born and bred, containeth in it self the seed of all sins; that fearfull sin against the Holy Gost it self not excepted.
Such venemous natures we have; that never was there any villany committed by any forlorn miscreant, whereunto we have not a disposition in our selves. Insomuch, that we ought to be humbled, even for those very sins, from which we are in a manner exempt … For that Cain's … blasphemy, Doegs murther, Pharaohs cruelty, Sodoms lust, Iudas his treason, Iulians apostacy, &c. are not our sins, and as much predominant in us, as they were in each of them; it is onelyonly Gods free grace and goodness. For all of them should have been thine and my sins, if God had left us to our selves. Lord, saith St Austin, thou hast forgiven me those sins which I have done, and those sins which onelyonly by thy grace I have not done: they were done in our inclination to them, and even that inclination needs Gods mercy. If we escape temptation, it is his mercy; if we stand in temptation, it is his mercy; if our wills consent not, it is his mercy; if we consent, and the act be hindered, it is his mercy; if we fall, and rise again by repentance, all is his mercy.
We cry out of Cain, Iudas, Iulian, the Sodomites: alas, they are but glasses to see our own faces in: For as in water, face answereth to face; so doth the heart of man to man, sayes Solomon, Prov. 27.19. Even hating of God, is by the Holy Ghost charged upon all men. Rom. 1.30. Iohn 15.23, 24, 25. VVe are all cut out of the same piece; and as there is the same nature of all Lyons, so of all men.
There is no part, power, function, or faculty, either of our souls or bodies, which is not become a ready instrument to dishonor God: our heart is a root of all corruption, a seed plot of all sin; our eyes are eyes of vanity, our ears are ears of folly, our mouths mouths of deceit, our hands hands of iniquity; and every part does dishonor God; which yet would be glorified of him. The understanding which was given us to learn vertue, is apt now to apprehend nothing but sin; the will which was given us to affect righteousness, is apt now to love nothing but wickedness; the memory which was given us to remember good things, is apt now to keep nothing but evil things &c. For sin like a spreading leprosie, is so grown over us, that from the crown of out heads, to the sole of our feet, there is nothing whole therein, but wounds, and swellings, and sores full of corruption. To be short, we are as Traitors, condemned to suffer eternal torments in Hell fire, being onelyonly reprieved for a time.
Sect. XIII.
And so much of Original sin, which is the pravity, naughtiness, and corruption of our Nature, Psal. 51.5. Now of actual sin, which is the transgression of Gods Law, 1 Ioh. 3.4. when evil thoughts are consented unto, and performed in outward deeds, Iames 1.15. Touching which we are to know, and take notice; that
The Law of God is spiritual, and therefore requireth, not onelyonly outward obedience in word and deed; but also inward in minde and heart, and that chiefly: neither doth it forbid onelyonly the committing of outward sins in word and deed; but also all the secret corruptions of the mind and heart. Rom. 7.13, 14, 15. Mat. 5.21, 22, 27, 28. 1 Iohn 3.15.
Again, where any duty is commanded, there the means which tend thereto are enjoyned; and where any vice is forbidden, there the occasions, provocations, and Allurements tending thereto are also forbidden. Again, … it well also in regard of circumstances; as namely, that it flows from a pious and good heart, sanctified by the holy Ghost; and be done in faith, obedience to the word, humility, saving knowledge and sincere love to God, zeal of his glory, and a desire to edifie and win others: of which I might give you many examples; as of the Iews fasting, Isa. 58, 3, to 8. of those reprobates preaching in Christs name, and casting out devils, Matth. 7.21, 22, 23. of Cain's sacrificing, 1 Iohn 3, 12. He offered, and God abhorred; because he cared not for the manner, to do it well, God cared not for his offering, though the act was good. Simon Magus believed, Herod listned, Felix feared, Saul obeyed, Iezabel fasted, the Pharisees prayed: but because they did not believe so, hear so, fear so, obey so, fast so, and pray so as God required, and as is before related, they were never the more regarded for what they did. For love is the fountain of obedience; and all external obedience to God without inward love, is hypocrisie: whereas Christ commends to his disciples, the care of keeping his commandments aright, as the utmost testimony of their love unto him, Ioh. 15.10.
Sect. XIV,
VVhichWhich being so, how oft and how many wayes do we all offend? For if we but narrowly look into our hearts and lives: we shall easily perceive, that there is not one of those righteous precepts, set down, Exod. 20. which we have not broken, ten thousand times, and ten thousand wayes. Yea, O God, (may the best of us say) there is no vein in me, that is not full of the blood of thy Son, whom I have crucified and crucified again by multiplying many, and often repeating the same sins; there is no artery in me, that hath not the spirit of error, the spirit, of pride, of passion, of lust, the spirit of giddinesse in it; no bone in me, that is not hardened with the custome of sin, nourished and suppled with the marrow of sin; no sinews, no ligaments, which do not tye and chain sin and sin together. Yea, If we but watch over our own hearts narrowly one day: we shall finde an army of unclean thoughts and desires there, perpetually fighting against our souls. VVhereby we are continually tempted, drawn away and enticed through our own concupiscence. As how many temptations come in by those Cinque ports the sences? how many more by Satans injections? presenting to the affections things absent from the sences? but most of all by lust it self, (a thing not created yet as quick as thought) tumbling over a thousand desires in one hour: For, the devil and our flesh meet together every day, and hour; to ingender new sins, which is the reason our sins are counted among those things which are infinite: as the hairs of our head, the sands of the Sea, the stars of Heaven.
VVe are swift to all evil, but to all good immoveable; when we do evil, we do it cheerfully, and quickly, and easily; but if we do any good, we do it faintly, and rawly, and slackly. VVe have used all our wisdom, to commit the foolishness of sin; our whole conversation hath been to serve Satan, and fulfil the lusts of the flesh. VVe even suck in iniquity like water … It hath been the course of our whole life, to leave that which God commands, and to do that which he forbids. The Word and Spirit may work in us some flashes of desire and purposes of better obedience: but we are constant in nothing, but in perpetuall offending; onelyonly therein we cease not: for when we are waking, our flesh tempts us to wickednesse; if we are sleeping, it sollicits us to filthiness.
Whatever God commands, we do the contrary: We prophane his Dayes, contemn his Ordinances, resist his Word, grieve his Spirit, misuse his Messengers, hate our reprovers, slander and persecute his people, seduce our friends, give ill example to our neighbours, open the mouthes of God's and our enemies, to blaspheme that glorious Name after which we are called, and the truth we profess. Yea, we have done more against God in one week, then we have done for him ever since we were born; and whereas the least of Gods mercies is greater then all the courtesies of men: we are not so thankfull to him for them all, as we are to a friend for some one good turn.
Sect. XV.
Neither are we sufficient of our selves to think, much less to speak, least of all to do ought that is good, 2 Cor. 3.5. Iohn 15.4, 5. There is so much wearisomness, pride, passion, lust, envy, ignorance, awkwardness, hypocrisie, infidelity, vain thoughts, unprofitableness, and the like; cleaving to our best actions, to defile them: that even our praying, and fasting, and repenting; our hearing, believing, and giving; our holiest communication, our most brotherly admonition, &c. are in themselves as filthy rags, Isa. 64.6. were they not accepted in Christ, covered with his righteousness, and washed white in his most precious blood.
Our very righteousness is as a menstruous cloth, Isa. 64.6. What then is our sinfulness? As bring we our lives to the rule; Look how many sins are cherished, so many false gods there are chosen. Look how many creatures thou inordinately lovest, fearest, trustest, rejoycest in; so many new gods hast thou coined: and wilt thou not then pleade guilty, when the first and second Commandment arraigneth thee?
Thou canst not away with swearing; but dost thou reprove others for their swearing? Didst thou never hear Sermons unpreparedly, irreverently, &c? Does thy heart upon a Sabbath rest from worldly thoughts? much more thy tongue from worldly speeches? There is murther of the heart, hatred: Hast not thou murthered thy neighbours soul, by thy negligence, perswasion, evil example, &c. Thou hast not stoln, but hast thou not coveted? Hast thou been liberal to those that are owners of a part of thy goods? hast thou not robb'd thy brother of his good name? which is above silver and gold. Hast not thou robb'd God of his worship? of his Sabbaths? of his Tythes, &c. Lying, flattering, detracting, listning to ta…s, yea not defending thy brothers good name, is to bear false witness.
… very first motions of sins, springing out of our hearts, though presently rejected; and a thousand the like: and yet for every drop of wickedness that is in the life, there is a sea in the heart that feeds it.
Sect. XVI.
True, if thou lookest on thy sins in Satans false glass, that will make them seem light, and contemptible; but behold them in the clear and perfect g…ass of Gods law, and they will appear abominable. Which makes our Saviour call hatred, murther; a wanton eye, adultery; &c. Yea, consider thy sins rightly, and they will appear as the Iudasses that betrayed, the Souldiers that apprehended, bound smote, and wounded thy Saviour, as the gall and vinegar in his mouth, spittle on his face, thorns on his head, nails in his hands, spear in his side, &c.
This is the way to know thy self sinful: and as thus to know thy self, is the best Divinity, as Demonax said of Philosophy: so thus to aggravate thy sins in thine own sight, is the only way to have them extenuated in the sight of God. Whence the more holy a childe of God is, the more sensible he is of his own unholiness; thinking none so vile as himself: as it fared with holy Iob, Iob 40.4. and 42.6. and with Isaiah, chap. 6.5. and 64.6. and with Saint Paul, 1 Tim. 1.15. Rom. 7.14. to 25. and with holy David, who almost in every Psalm so much bewails his sins, originall and actual; of omission and commission.
Carnal men are only troubled for those sins that appear to the world; but those in whom Christs is formed anew, think they cannot be humbled enough for their evil thoughts, vain and unprofitable words, for the evil which cleaves even to their best actions; for sins of omission, as the want of faith, and love, and repentance, want of the true fear of God, the neglect of preparation, and unprofitable hearing, of praying, and reading, in their families, of instructing their children and servants, of sanctifying the Sabbath, and seeing that all under them do the same; their unfruitfulness, under the means of grace, their not growing in grace, and the like. And thus do all experimental Christians, all that have spiritual eies. The want whereof I take to be the cause of all desperate wickedness; as what else but invincible ignorance is the cause, why wickednesse so abounds in every corner o… the Land? Sin indeed at first was the cause of ignorance; but now ignorance is the cause of Sin, swearing, and lying, and killing, and stealing, and whoring abound (saith the Prophet) because there is no knowledge of God in the land, Hosea 4.1, 2. It is a people that do erre in their hearts, saies God; Why? Because they have not known my ways; Psal. 95.10. Ye are deceived, (saith our Saviour) because ye know not the Scriptures, neither the power of God, Matth. 22.29. VVhen Christ wept over Ierusalem, what was the cause? Even their blindnesse. If thou hadst known (saith he) at the least in this thy day, those things which now are hid from thine eyes, Luke 19.42. Because men know not the wages of evil, therefore they do it: and because they would securely do it, therefore they refuse to know it. O that men knew how good it is to obey; to disobey. how evil! for this would soon disperse and dispel all the black clouds of their reigning sins in a moment. If they were wise (saith St. Bernard) they would fore-see the torments of Hell, and prevent them; but they that wander in by-paths, declare themselves ignorant of the rightway of salvation, Rom. 3.17. I grant, many that are wicked have a shew of wisdom: but let them seem to know never so much; yet it is through ignorance that they do so ill.
Sect. XVII.
And so having given you a short survey of our wretchedness, by reason of Original sin, and actual transgressions; by which we must confess to have deserved double damnation: I come now to declare the means which God of his infinite goodnesse hath found out, both for the satisfying of his justice, and also freeing us from the guilt, and punishment of either. And that with as much brevity, as may stand with perspicuity.
First in general we must undoubtedly know, that the sole perfection of a Christian, is …he imputation of Christs righteousnesse; and the not imputation of his own unrighteousnesse; as appears by the whole current of Scripture, of which a few.
Even the Son of man came to give his life a ransom for many. Mark, 10.45. As in Adam all die, so in Christ shall all be made alive, 1 Cor. 15.21, 22. As by one mans disobedience, many were made sinners: so by the obedience of one, shall many be made righteous, &c. Rom. 5.18, 19. As by the offence of one, the fault came on all men to condemnation: so by the justifying of one, the benefit abounded towards all men to the justification of life, Rom. 5.18. Unto Iesus Christ that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, Rev. 1.5. The blood of Iesus Christ his Son, cleanseth us from all our sins, 1 Joh. 1.7. he is the reconciliation for our sins, &c. 1 Joh. 2 1, 2. He hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin: that we might be made the righteousnesse of God in him, 2 Cor. 5.21. He was delivered to death for our sins, and is risen again for our justification, Rom. 4.25. Who his own self, bare our sins in his own body on the tree; by whose stripes we were healed, 1 Pet. 2.24. He was wounded for our transgressions, he was broken for our iniquities, the chastisement of our peace was upon him and with his stripes we were healed, Isa. 53.5. Neither is there salvation in any other; for among men there is given none other name under Heaven whereby we must be saved, Acts 4.12. The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life, through Iesus Christ our Lord, Rom. 6.23. I am the resurrection and the life, he that beleeveth in me, although he were dead, yet shall he live, John 11.25. You hath he quickned, that were dead in trespasses and sins, Ephes. 2.1. God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world, to condemn the world: but that the world through him might be saved, Joh. 4.16. to 20.
God commendeth his love towards us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us: much more then being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. For if when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son: much more being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life, Rom. 5, 6. to 11, read to the end of the Chapter. See more Iohn 1.29. Acts 13.39. Rom. 6.4. to 23. and 8.2, 3. and 10. 3,4. 1 Cor. 15.56. Col. 1.14. Gal, 3.22. Heb. 9.28. 1 Pet. 1.18, 19, 20. 1 Joh. 3.8.
Sect. XVIII.
As Christ was a sinner onelyonly by the imputation of our sins: so we are just, onelyonly by the imputation of his righteousness. Our good works (were they never so many and rare) cannot justify us, or deserve any thing at Gods hands: it is onelyonly in Christ that they are accepted, and only for Christ that they are rewarded. Yea the opinion of thine own righteousnesse, makes thy condition far worse then the wickedest mans alive. For Christ that came to save all weary and heavy laden sinners; (be they never so wicked) neither came to save, or once to call thee that hast no sin, but art righteous enough without him. As hear his own words to the proud Pharisees, who had the same thoughts of themselves as thou hast; They that be whole need not a Physitian, but they that are sick. I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. The lost sheep of the house of Israel, Mat. 9.13. and 10.6. and 15.24. and 18.11. Nor can any soul be so dangerously sick; as thou, who art least sensible of thy being sick.
Briefly, until with Saint Paul, thou renounceth thine own righteousness, seest thy self the greatest of sinners, art able to discern sin in every thing thou canst think, speak, or do, and that thy very righteousness is no better then a menstruous cloth, Isai. 64.6. thou canst have no part in Christ. And untill Christ shall become thine by Regeneration, and a lively faith: Thou art bound to keep the whole Law, actually and spiritually with thy whole man, thy whole life; or else suffer eternal death and destruction of body and soul in Hell for thy not keeping it. So that thou hast yet to answer (and I pray mind it seriously) for all the sins, that ever thou hast committed, who art not able to answer for one of the least of them. For the wages of sin, (any sin be it never so small) is eternal death, Rom. 6.23. Gal. 2.16, 19, 20, 21.
Neither let Satan, nor thy own deceitfull heart delude thee; in thinking that thou hast faith, when thine own words declare the contrary. Nor would I ask any more evidence against thee in this, then thine own mouth; in saying, that thou never doubtedst in all thy life: for this makes it plain that thou never hadst faith, nor ever knewest what saith means. For he who never doubted, never believed: and Satan hath none so sure, as those whom he never yet assaulted.