The Case and Cure of a Deserted Soul, Chapter 15

The Case and Cure of a Deserted Soul · Chapter 15

p. 149CHAP. XV. Deſertions are for correction,Deſertions corrections. and are cauſed by pride, and careleſneſſe, &c.

11. PRide; Of pride.Which is a ſwelling and tumor in the ſpirit, or a lifting up in the heart, (2 Cor. 12.7.) through a ſuppoſed abundance of revelation in the minde, or of other rich endowments of ſpirituall graces; it brought upon the Apoſtle that goaring Thorne in the fleſh, the meſſenger of Sathan to buffet him, leſt hee ſhould bee exalted above meaſure. Pride is a dangerous evill, it breedes contempt of others, which God abhorreth, it is a croſſing of God in the end of all his grace and mercy, which is to exalt p. 150his owne glory, Epheſ. 1.6, 12. Chap. 2.7, 8, 9. That no fleſh ſhould glory, but that hee that gloryeth, ſhould glory in the Lord, 1 Cor. 1.29, 30, 31. 2 Cor. 10.17. The more we eſteeme of our ſelves, the more we take from Gods account and put to our owne, which is a robbing of God in that which he hath ſaid, He will give to none other, Iſa 42.8. therefore God reſiſts the proud, Iames 4.6. 1 Pet. 5.5. and cuts him ſhort, and will not be friendly to him; The proud he lookes at afarre off. Pſal. 138.6. as with diſdaine and diſpleaſure; Making him low that exalteth himſelfe, Prov. 29.23. the poore in heart are deare in his eyes; And the hungry he fils with good things, but the rich he ſends empty away, Luke 1.53. And no wonder that a proud heart is a dead heart, and that upon an elevated ſpirit there be barrenneſſe as upon the mountaines, for pride kills endeavour; rich men take no paines, but the poore is diligent, and all encreaſe and livelineſſe of ſoule is the reward of induſtrious ſeeking; as pride abateth endeavours, ſo it debaſeth them, prayer, p. 151hearing, all duties are ſpoiled by the ſavour of this noiſome evill; oh yee proud in heart, your commodities are marred, and are not vendible; all your works lie upon your hands, as breathed and worthleſſe wares, ſo as the merchant loſeth, when his goods are not current and marketable; ſo you wax poore, you have no trade with heaven; that God that accepts the humble that comes to him with the lading of prayers, teares, groans, cries, and takes theſe, and likes them, and makes him rich returnes; turnes backe the proud and all their works.

22 Careleſneſſe.Of careleſneſſe.

11 In not accepting the ſeaſons of grace, when God draweth neare, and and we regard not; when he knocketh, Not accepting ſeaſons of grace.we open not; he often leaves us, and goeth from us: ſo he came to the Church, And knocked, open to me myſiſter, my love, my dove, my undefiled, for my head is filled with dew, and my locks with the drops of the night, but ſhe was careleſſe, and regarded not the day of her viſitation, and what followeth? I opened p. 152to my beloved, but my beloved had withdrawne himſelfe, and was gone; I ſought him, but I could not finde him, I called him, but he anſwered me not, Cant. 5.2, 6. Sometimes the ſpirit comes ſweetly melting, and tempering the heart to an holy ſoftneſſe, and godly ſorrow, but is quenched by negligence; therefore juſtly doth that ſoule groane under the miſery of a ſtupid heart, lamenting with the Church; Why haſt thou hardned our hearts from thy fear? Eſay 63.17. and taking up that cry with me ſo often here, I cannot repent, my heart is frozen, I cannot mourne; ſometimes he cometh with ſtrong convictions, perſwaſions, and contections, to take the heart off from a way that is not good, ſo that the heart begins to draw backe it ſelfe; but becauſe we loſe this opportunity, therefore out ſins remain, and tyrannize in us, cauſing usto take up Davids complaint, Iniquities prevaile againſt me, Pſal. 65.32. Sometimes he commeth exciting and raiſing thoughts and reſolutions of heart, to a more heavenly walking; p. 153but we hoiſe not up ſails to theſe gales, we blow not up this ſpark, therfore juſtly are we left to a ſpirit of dulneſſe, neither have life nor peace in the uſe of ordinances, and diſcharge of duties.

2Secondly, the neglect of the meanes of grace, which is;Neglect of meanes

11 When they are not ſo much uſed: as the body when it is ſhortned in neceſſary food, groweth weake;When not ſo much uſed. ſo the abating of the commons of the ſoule doth weaken grace. The leſſe plants are watered, the worſe they thrive: we are fed by that whereof we are bred;hhforeign. Ariſt. hiſt. anim. l. 8. c. 1. The word begets us, 1 Pet. 1.23. and the word feeds us, 1 Pet. 2.2. There is a nutritive vertue in every ordinance; they are meanes appointed of God, as pipes for the conveyance of living waters, into theſe empty ciſterns of our hearts; if therefore, either out of wretchleſneſſe, or pride, any doe withdraw from them, they withdraw from God; and if ſo, no wonder if God withdraw from them: therfore conſider this, if you have not fallen from your abundant uſe of the ordinances, and if p. 154you enjoy God leſſe than you have done, know it is, becauſe you ſeeke him leſſe than you have done.

22 When they are not ſo well uſed: not the meere uſe,When not ſo well uſed. but the uſe of them in a ſpirituall manner doth profit; a man may ſtarve in plenty; when you receive the Word and Sacraments, it you thinke that the very act done is ſufficient, you are deceived; for the food of the ſoule is not like the food of the body, which being taken in onelyonly, though there be no more thought of it, yet doth nouriſh; nor like the poole of Betheſda, which required but comming into it, when the Angel moved it: but we muſt bring hearts fitted and prepared, ſeeking earneſtly of God the effuſion of his ſpirit, yea, we muſt work the Word upon our hearts, knowing, that where the Miniſters part ends, there ours begins; when therefore we onelyonly heare, and labour not to worke our hearts to a conformity to the Word, we deceive our ſelves. Iam. 1.11 and God requites our careleſneſſe with ſpirituall impoveriſhment, ſhutting … p. 155his mercies, and locking up his treaſures from us. As the bleſſing and good providence of God makes him that is diligent to increaſe in riches, whereas be becometh poore that dealeth with a ſlacke hand, Prov. 10.4. ſo the ſame God doth plentifully recompence the diligence of the Saints in their ſpirituall affaires, and this he would have all men beleeve in their firſt comming to him, That he is a rewarder of them that ſeeke him diligently, Heb. 11.6. But it is juſt, that he that labours not ſhould not eat, he that digs not for the pearle, ſhould not finde it, but that the fruit of ſpirituall ſlothfulneſſe ſhould be a decay in ſpirituall eſtate.

33 Neglect of duties and exerciſes of godlineſſe: you know the promiſe, Neglect of duties.To him that hath ſhall be given, &c. Matth. 25. that is, he that uſeth his taknt with fidelity, and ſedulity, ſhall increaſe in the ſame talent (I ſay in the ſameiiAbbot in Tompſ. Diatr., for elſe it holds not, that he that uſeth the talent in one kinde, ſhall thrive in another, for what a man ſoweth, that ſhall he reape) but ſuch as are idle p. 156and negligent, ſhall grow worſe and worſe; duties of godlineſſe are a Chriſtians trade, and he that is ſlacke in them, ſhall be on the loſing hand: God will puniſh the unfaithfull ſervant, and the wages of the idle ſhall be rods and ſtripes. Now the failings in duties are theſe.

11 When they are omitted, Not done.this hinders ſpirituall growthkkInaequabilitas in bono non modo eſt impedimentum progreſſus, ſed cauſa regreſſus, &c. Plut. de profectu virt.; for not onelyonly contrary acts of vice, but ceſſation of acts of vertue, doth weaken the better part; we muſt not think that the livelines and vigorous ſtirring of ſpirit gotten in our approach to God in any duty, will laſt alway; we live by prayer, and reading, and meditation, as we do in the fleſh by food, and ſleepe, and other naturall refections: and as the body, though it be filled to day, and ſpirits are much cheared, yet if there be not a conſtant uſe of food, it will wax weake; ſo it is with our ſoulesllQuae ſunt in motuad finem perficiuntur per motū ad finem, quia per motum fincm aſſequuntur. Aquin., if they doe not daily and conſtantly feed themſelves in God, become feeble and languid: yet it muſt be noted, that it is not meere omiſſion, but the voluntary p. 157omiſſion of duties which hurteth; when the heart hangs off, and forſakes it, as a thing unpleaſant, then it is in the way to loſe it ſelfe, and much of that ſweet communion which it had; for when the heart withdrawes from God, then God withdraws from it, Lev. 26.27, 28 2 Chron. 15.2.

22 When though duties are not omitted, yet are ſlightly done: Ill done.a Chriſtian may as well loſe by doing good evilly, as by doing what is evill; and as well by miſdoing of good, as not doing: remiſſe acts weaken habits, as well as contrary actsmmAliqui actus ab habi…u procedentes diminuunt habitum, ſi negligenter fiant.; lazineſſe and idleneſſe in ſpirituall endeavours, are ſccret theeves, robbing us of many heavenly influences from above: cold prayer is like a bow ſlacke bent, which will not deliver the arrow home to the marke: where God reaps moſt, he ſoweth moſt; if we ſow to the ſpirit, we ſhall reape of the ſpirit; any duty which is not ſpirituall and lively, is like a ſacrifice without life, which God will not acceptnnSapiens nummularius eſt Deus, nummum nec falſum, nec fractum recipiet. Bern. de temp. 109.; all is loſt labour which is not done in the ſpirit; and as our p. 158actions are formed by our ſpirits, ſo our ſpirits are much formed by our actions; he that accuſtometh himſelfe to doe good ſuperficially, will become ſuperficiall in goodneſſe; we ſhould never come to God in vaine, nor thinke the duty well done, till we finde GodppNunquam abste, abſque te recedo. Bern. ep. 116..

33 Private and ſecret converſe with God in duties: Eſpecially private duties.a man may doe much in the view of others, with abundant flaſhes of affection, yet have little of God; publike actions are often, though materially ſpirituall, yet formally fleſhly, being produced by humane reſpects; the heart filled with ambition, or ſuch other advantage, which fils her ſailes for the preſent, and beares her on; but that which hath its riſe from fleſhly principles, doth not worke to the advancement of ſpirituall grace: ſecret duties are free from ſuch mixtures and ingrediences, as doe debaſe both the action and the ſpirit, and to a well tempered ſoule are very precious. Conſider then what you are in ſecret, where no eare can heare, no eye can ſee, no hand can reward, but Gods alone … p. 159What are you in confeſſion of perſonall failings, in ſupplication of ſuch ſupplies, in thankfulneſſe for ſuch mercies, as none are privie to, but God and your ſelves? for if you be leſſe active and ſerious in your retired and cloſet duties, then in thoſe that are more open and publike, it is evident, that ſomething without you doth make the difference; and if worldly motives are the wheels upon which your hearts are moved, it is no wonder if God meet you not with largeſſes of quickning grace.

44 Not watching: this is a great cauſe of declining, for the way is narrow,Not watching. the heart apt to ſtrayqqNihieſt in nobia corde fugacius. Greg. paſt. cur. part. 3. c. 1. §. 15., and there are many things to drive and draw you from the path of life;rrHoſtem foris non habebat, domi tamen reperit: de Solomone dictum. Can. de repub. heb. l. r. 13. nunquam ceſſat, foreign. ut Hannibal de Metello, apud Plut. and though there were none without us to put us out of the way, yet there is a ſinfulneſſe reſident in us, and active; and when you goe from God, you goe from life, for your life is in him, and from him; in nature, cauſes worke ſtrongeſt p. 160in a propinquity, as the fire communicates more its heat to that which is neare it, then to that which is farre diſtant from it: ſo the cloſer we keepe to God by a watchfull and diligent carefulneſſe, the more he powres into us of his fulneſſe. By nature we were afarre off, and in that condition we were like thoſe in the remote Northern parts, which darkneſſe and deſolateneſſe doth inhabit, becauſe the Sunne hath little or no converſe with them; we were then without God, without Chriſt, and without hope in the world, Eph. 2.13. but by grace we are made neare, and ſo have fellowſhip and communion with God; but if by heedleſneſſe and folly we goe out from him, we have cauſe to blame none but our ſelves, that we are leſſe happy in the enjoyment of him: yea, if God let looſe upon us corruptions from within, and tentations from without to beſet us, and much to ſpoile, pillage, waſte, and weaken us.