Sweet and Soul-Persuading Inducements Leading Unto Christ, Chapter 20
CHAP. XX.
Their pride opened who dreame of ability in themſelves to reſtore themſelves to ſpirituall life.SEe then in this the pride and vanity of ſuch men as dreame of a power and ability in themſelves to reſtore themſelves unto ſpirituall life. As Sampſon burſt his withs, and went out when Dalilah cryed, the Philiſtines are upon thee Sampſon. Thus they thinke to breake the chaines of ſinne, to come forth of the grave of their corruption at their pleaſure, having the word of exhortation to call them. Man indeed indowed with true and ſaving grace may come when God cals him, as Sampſon went forth at the voice of Dalilah, while his lockes were upon him; but as Sampſon had no power to preſerve himſelfe when his lockes were cut off, no more hath man deſtitute of ſaving grace any power to reſtore himſelfe to the life of grace, or to defend himſelfe againſt the adverſaries of his peace:Mans n…bility to this worke opened. 1. No principle of grace left. Rom. 7.18. Col. 2.12. The branch cannot live without the root, nor the ſoule a ſpirituall life without Chriſt; Man is wholly diſabled unto this worke, having no feed nor principle of grace remaining in him, being as fully under the dominion of ſinne, as the dead are under the dominion of death, at as great a diſtance from the life of grace as they who have been long dead, and divers dayes, like Lazarus, in the grave, are from the life of nature.
2. Vtter blindneſſe. Luke 19 41. Iſa 5.21.2. Being ſo blinded that they cannot diſcerne the things which belong to their ſpirituall vivification, from the things which tend to their deſtruction, the wayes of death are wayes of life in their apprehenſion, as the Aſſyrians ſmitten with blindneſſe thought the way leading to Samaria to be the way leading to Aſſyria. Thus they repute the way which leadeth unto death to be the way leading unto life, they call evill good, and good evill.
3. Declination of meanes. Pſal. 58.5.3. They decline the meanes of their ſpirituall quickning, they ſtop their cares againſt the voice which ſhould awaken and enliven them, they ſhut their eyes againſt the light which ſhould illuminate them.
4. Enmity againſt the miniſtery. Rom. 8.7. Iohn 3.19. Gal. 4.16.4. They are full of enmity againſt the miniſtery which ſhould convert them, they make warre againſt the miniſtery of the word, as Saul againſt David: This troubles them as the Star troubled Herod, the Miniſter is their enemy becauſe he tels them the truth.
5. Sweeneſſe of ſin Iob 20.12.5. Sinne is a ſweet diſh to their palate, they are inſatiable in the commiſſion of it, their ſoules are wedded to it, they have made a Covenant with it, they boaſt and glory in it.
6. Grace and holineſſe diſhonourable in their eye. Iob 21 14.6. The life of grace and holineſſe is diſhonourable and contemptible in their eye; Nothing with them is beautifull and amiable, excellent and honourable, but that which is either for the matter or for the circumſtances ſinfull: And therefore when the dead can raiſe themſelves out of their graves, when the ſtones can turne themſelves into fleſh, the thornes into vines, when the Leopard can change his ſpots, and the Blackamoore his skinne, then may man by his owne power, without the mighty worke of Chriſt, raiſe himſelfe to a new life, turne his hard into a tender heart, his barren into a fruitfull ſoule, and his uncleane into a pure converſation. Were man ſenſible of his emptineſſe of all ſpirituall good, of his obſtinacy againſt grace, of his ſtrong and unchangeable bent to evill, of the deſperate diſpoſition of his heart to ſinne, of his through ſubiection under Satan, and of the prophane antipathy which is in his heart againſt grace, and of his inability to receive it when it is proffered, he would never exalt himſelfe into Chriſts roome, and take upon him to be the workman of his owne converſion; he would never continue in ſinne, preſuming to repent at laſt, when he liſt; doubtleſſe that man never felt the power of Chriſt in his converſion, that dreames of a power in himſelfe to convert and change himſelfe; Preſumption of ſelf-goodneſſe invincibly argues the abſence of all ſaving goodneſſe: The diſeaſed came either by their owne ſtrength, or by the help of others to Bethesda; but when the foot was in the poole, if the Angell did not move the waters there was no healing: Man may come to the miniſtery of the word by his owne ſtrength, and by the perſwaſion of others; but when he is come, and heares the word, there is no healing unleſſe Chriſt worke mightily with the Goſpell: For Paul plants and Apollo waters, but God giveth the increaſe.
Is Chriſt the Author and worker of ſpirituall life?Comming unto Chriſt for ſpirituall life perſwaded, being as dead me without Chriſt 1 For Ignorance. Eccl 9.5. Iſa. 59 10. Then we muſt addreſſe our ſelves to Chriſt, that Chriſt may quicken and enliven us. Whiles we ſtand aloofe off, and continue ſtrangers to Chriſt, we are all dead men, dead ſpiritually while we live corporally, alienated from the life of God while we enjoy the life of men; continuing ſtrangers to Chriſt we are all dead in ſinne; and as the dead know not any thing, no more doe we ſavingly and comfortably know any thing of God, of Chriſt, of his word, or of the Spirit of grace; we are in darkneſſe like the dead, we are blinde and groape at the noone day as in the midnight:2. Vnſenſibleneſſe. As the dead have no feeling of the diſeaſe which killed them, of the burthen of earth caſt upon them, no more have we of the ſinne which wounds us, and haſtens the ſecond death upon us; we are, as Saint Paul ſaid, paſt feeling: As the dead have no vigor, no ſtrength,Eph 4.19. 3. Weakneſſe. no motion, no more have we any power, diſpoſition, or inclination to any thing holy, and ſavingly good in the ſight of God.4. Vncomfortableneſſe. As the dead are an uncomfortable spectacle, and caſt an evill ſavour, ſo are we very unſavoury in Gods noſthrils, an abomination in the eyes of God:5. Excluſion from Chriſt. As the dead have no claime nor title to any thing, their intereſt in what they once enjoyed is loſt: Thus we have no title to Chriſt, no intereſt in Gods Covenant of grace;6. Growing worſe. and as the dead putrifie and rot more and more, ſo we grow worſe and worſe as long as we continue without Chriſt. O therefore let us come to Chriſt that he may enliven us, as he raiſed Lazarus, the Widowes ſonne, and the Rulers daughter! Let us come to Chriſt to raiſe our ſoules, as the woman of Shunem came to the Prophet to raiſe her dead ſonne, ſhe made haſte to the Prophet; we muſt come ſpeedily unto Chriſt, in the dayes of our youth, before we have continued long under the death and dominion of ſinne; the woman of Shunem came humbly to the Prophet, ſhe caſt her ſelfe downe at the feet of the Prophet: We muſt come to Chriſt in great humility, humbling our ſelves before him, having our hearts full of ſorrow for our ſinne, earneſtly petitioning the vivification of our ſoules: The woman of Shunem laid hold upon the Prophets feet, and would not let him goe, untill he went with her and raiſed her ſonne. Thus muſt we lay hold on Chriſt, carry him with us, bring him home into the houſe of our hearts, that Chriſt may quicken us to the life of grace here, and to the life of glory hereafter.
Mans beſt works without Chriſt are dead works.This likewiſe diſcovers to us what all our works and ſervices are as long as we are without Chriſt; Chriſt is the Author and worker of ſpirituall life, and while we are without Chriſt, we are without ſpirituall life; and where is no life, there is no action, no motion; where is no life of grace, there is no moving, no ſtirring in the wayes of godlineſſe: All the workes of naturall men, how ſpecious ſoever in outward appearance, yet they are as the Scripture termes them, but dead workes; 1 They proceed not from a Principle of ſpirituall life.their hearing, praying, receiving of the Sacrament, and other duties of righteouſneſſe done by them are works without life:
For 1. they proceed not from an inward Principle of spirituall life, all their motions in and about the duties of godlineſſe, like the motions of Clockes and Watches, proceed not from life, but from art, from the feare of hell, from the apprehenſion of death, from the ſence of affliction, from the deſire of the applauſe and favour of men, from the hope of reaping the harveſt of ſome worldly benefit; and therefore as the clocke ceaſeth his motion, when the Spring is downe, ſo doe theſe men uſually ceaſe their motion in the wayes of godlineſſe, when the outward loadſtone which drew them, is taken away, as yron having no principle of life within it, ſtops it's motion when the loadſtone is removed; then they are at a ſtay, then they goe backe.
2. Their ſervices, if we conſider the nature of them,2 Morall, not ſpirituall, formall, not powerfull. they are but morall and eccleſiaſticall ſervices, no spirituall ſervices; They have (as the Apoſtle ſaith) a forme of godlineſſe, but they deny the power of it: As a dead man hath the forme and lineaments of a living man, but not the power and vivacity of a living man; their works for the matter of them may be morally and eccleſiaſtically good, but not ſpiritually good; their coine, their ſervice, as Jeremy termes it, is reprobate ſilver; Reprobate ſilver may have the ſtamp, colour, and ſimilitude of true coine, and yet is baſe mettall: A naturall mans duties of ſervice, and obedience to God may have the ſimilitude and colour of a ſpirituall mans ſervice; but when they are tryed, they are found to be counterfeit, abominable in the ſight of God, how beautifull ſoever in the eyes of men: Swines bloud is of as cleare and perfect colour to the eye, as ſheeps bloud; yet it is of another nature, and to offer Swines bloud under the Law was an abomination: Thus the ſervice of a carnall man may have the outward colour of a regenerate mans ſervice, and be as pure and perfect in the outward appearance, as the ſervice of the holieſt perſons, and yet it is of another nature, and a very abomination in the ſight of God.
3. Their ſervices, if you looke upon the adjunct of them are cold ſervices; coldneſſe is a Symptome of death, when a man is dead, the whole man is cold; the works of a naturall and carnall man are cold, they have no ſpirituall life, no heavenly warmth, no vivacity and holy quickneſſe in them. It is ſaid of David that he had many cloathes, yet he got no heate: Thus carnall men have all the ordinances of God, all meanes to warme their ſoules, and yet they continue cold, as a dead body under many cloathes; they may performe many religious duties, and yet have no heate, no warmth in them; At the beſt they are but like Ephraims cake halfe baked, like lukewarme meat, ſuch as is offenſive to the ſtomacke, and therefore Chriſt threatens to spew them out of his mouth; they have nothing of the Spirit of God within them, whoſe working is likened unto fire, making men fervent in Prayer, cauſing their hearts to burne within them in hearing, as the hearts of the two Diſciples did; this fire, this heavenly heate is wanting, and therefore all their ſervice is but as a ſacrifice without fire, of no uſe, of no acceptance with the Lord.
4. Services tending to baſe ends.4. Their ſervices, if you obſerve their end, are arrowes levelled to a low marke; A dead man cannot lift himſelfe up from the earth; A man without Chriſt, and empty of ſpirituall life, cannot looke above himſelfe and his owne fleſh in any thing he doth: The effect ever ſuites with the cauſe; the thorne cannot beare figges, the fruit is anſwerable to the nature of the Tree; He that hath nothing of God in him cannot intend God in his undertaking; he that is alienated from the life of God, cannot worke for God. That (ſaith our Saviour) which is of the fleſh is fleſh, fleſhly diſpoſed, intending the fleſh, and nothing elſe, doing all for himſelfe; ſeeking his owne things, and not the things which are Christs; his owne profit, his owne eaſe, his owne applauſe; he ſerves not the Lord Jeſus, but his owne belly, as Saint Paul ſpeakes; and thus the originall, the nature, adjunct, and end of a carnall mans works demonſtrate them to be dead works, of no eſteem with God, how glorious ſoever in the eyes of men.
The glory of ſpirituall life due to Chriſt. Iſa. 9.6.As Chriſt is the Author and worker of Spirituall life, ſo the glory and the praiſe of all grace and holineſſe, of the whole ſpirituall life of Chriſtians is to be attributed unto Chriſt Jeſus; Chriſt is the everlaſting Father, from whom we have our new birth, the high and heavenly workman, from whom we have our ſpirituall being and new Creation;lEph. 2.10. the life by whom we are quickened; the Sun by whom we are enlightened; the Phyſitian by whom we are healed. Chriſt Jeſus is the fountaine of all grace and goodneſſe, life and holineſſe to true beleevers; they are all members enlivened by this head, Stars enlightened by this Sunne, fields manured by this husbandman, houſes builded by this Architect, and veſſels filled by this fountaine; the praiſe of all mans grace and holineſſe is due to Chriſt Jeſus. Art thou awakened out of thy ſpirituall ſleep and ſlumber? it is Chriſt hath done it, as the mActs 12 7.Angell awakened Peter; the Lyon by his cry awakens his young, Chriſt the Lyon of the Tribe of Judah, by his mighty voice in the Goſpell awakens Gods choſen. Are the eyes of thy underſtanding enlightened? Chriſt is the nIohn 1.9. Iohn 9.light who hath enlightened thee, as he opened the eyes of him that was borne blind. Art thou cleanſed from thy ſinne? it is Chriſt who is the oMal. 3.3.refiners fire, and the fullers ſope that hath purged thee, as Jordan cleanſed Naaman from his leproſie. Art thou pIſa. 49.9. Iſa. 61.1, 2.delivered from the priſon of thy corruption, and the bondage of Satan? it is Chriſt hath brought thee forth, as the Angell brought Peter out of Herods priſon. Haſt thou liberty to come to God by faith and love? it is Chriſt hath made thee free in thy underſtanding to diſcerne the things of God, in thy will to chuſe and intend God, in thy imagination to thinke upon God, in thy memory to remember God, in thy affections to feare, truſt, love and rejoyce in God, in thy eares to attend to the word of God, in thine eyes to behold God in his works, in thy tongue to ſpeake of God, to the edification of others, and to celebrate God for his mercies; Chriſt is the Authour and workman of all Chriſtian freedome. Art thou filled with the gifts and graces of Gods Spirit? Chriſt is the fountaine that hath filled thee, all thy receivings are of Chriſts qIohn 1.16. 2 Cor. 5.19.fulneſſe, as the branches are filled by the root, and the Starres by the Sunne. Haſt thou reconciliation and acceptation with God? it is Chriſt that hath brought thee nigh to God, procured favour for thee with the Lord, as Joſeph procured favour for his brethren with the King of Egypt; Chriſt is the rEph. 1 6.beloved in whom thou art accepted. Art thou able to endure temptation, to undergoe the heavy burthen of affliction? Chriſt is the rocke that ſuſtaines thee, as the rocke in the Parable ſuſtained the houſe from ſinking, when the winds and waves did beate and blow upon it; Chriſt is the Arke that beares thee up, as Noah was borne up in the Deluge; Chriſt is the ſhield and buckler, and wall of fire that defends thee; it is Chriſts power in thee, it is Chriſts preſence with thee, as with the three children in the fiery furnace, that ſtrengthens and inables thee to hold out, that makes thee victorious over all oppoſing powers. In a word, it is Chriſt that works all thy works of grace and peace, faith and love, hope and patience, conſtancy and perſeverance in thee; he begins the life of grace within thee, and continues it to the life of glory: Aſcribe therefore to the Lord Jeſus the praiſe of all thy goodneſſe, acknowledge him to be the giver of all thy gifts, the Authour of all thy holy and gracious works, the Sunne that hath enlightened thy darkneſſe, the quickning Spirit who hath enlivened and freed thee from thy deadneſſe, the Phyſitian who hath healed thy diſeaſes, the Counſellor who hath reſolved thee in all thy doubtings, the fiery pillar who hath gone before thee, protecting and guiding thee in all thy goings; the Moſes rod which hath divided the waters, and made a paſſage for thee, through the red Sea of all thy afflictions; the Captaine who hath overcome for thee in all thy Conqueſts; and the King who of his owne mercy crownes thee, and his owne works in thee, after all thy tryals: Let Chriſt have the glory of all from thee, becauſe he accompliſheth all for thee by his living in thee.