The Combat Between the Flesh and Spirit, Sermon 22
Sermon XXII. At Lawrence Jewry London, Januar. 26. 1650.
GAL. 5. verſe 17.
For the fleſh luſts againſt the Spirit, and the Spirit againſt the fleſh, and theſe are contrary the one to the other, ſo that ye cannot do the things that ye would.
HAving formerly ſhewed by what meanes and ways the fleſh labours to divert men from duty; I come now to ſhew you alſo how it labours to interrupt men in duty; and this is a very practical point, and there are many caſes of conſcience, which are incident, and may pertinently fall in in the handling of this particular. But before I come to give you the Queries I intend to handle, I ſhall premiſe theſe ten Concluſions, or Poſitions about the fleſh, its diſturbing good men in good duties.
1. The firſt is this, that the corruption of the fleſh it is more prevalent with good men to diſturb them in, then to divert them from holy duties. Indeed with men unregenerate corrupt nature prevailes more to divert them from duty; but it is contrary with the regenerate. Godly men are not ſo ſubject to have diverſions from, as diſturbances in holy performances; neglects of duty they fall under the cognizance of a natural conſcience, and therefore good men are not ſo often overcome in that way; but as for diſturbances in duty, they are not taken notice of by a natural conſcience.
2. A godly man is more interrupted in duty by his own beart, then he is either by the devill, or the world, or any thing elſe beſide. We many times blame our callings, and the devil, that he is buſie with us; when we have more cauſe to blame our own naughty hearts. As it is the property of good men when they ſin to blame their corrupt natures, and not the devill, for ſo did David: 2 Sam. 24.10.So on the contrary, when good men are interrupted in duty, they do not blame the devil or the world ſo much as their own hearts. As the Apoſtle Pavl ſayes of himſelfe, Rom. 7.18.To will is preſent with me, but how to perform that which is good, I finde not; that is, I finde not ability to be intent and ſerious, in the worſhip of God; but what doth he blame, Rom. 7.25.not the devill, or the world, but it is ſin which dwelleth in me. And in the 25. verſe he ſayes, With my minde I ſerve the law of God, but with the fleſh, the law of ſin. It is the fleſh which carries the force of a law, whereby we ſin in the ſervice of God; and therefore, oh man, do not blame the devill, or the world, but thy own heart.
3. Another Poſition is this, that the corruption of the fleſh interrupting of us in duty, it is manifeſt and violent both in ſecret, as alſo in publick duties; thy heart will be violent againſt thee, when thou art alone, between God and thy own ſoul, as alſo when thou art in publick; your own experience will contribute to the truth of this. What roving mindes, and what diſtracted thoughts are you haunted with in your ſecret retirements? Yea, alſo in publick duties, how hard is it to bound the thoughts, and to compoſe the minde, to lay a reſtraint upon devotion?
4. That a mans heart, and corrupt nature, is more apt to interrupt him in extraordinary duties, then in common and ordinary duties. A man therefore ſhall be more haunted with evill thoughts upon a ſolemn faſt-day, then upon an ordinary day: did you ever ſet your ſelves upon the ſolemn duties of examination and meditation? if you did, you have found your hearts have more troubled you in thoſe duties, then in reading, hearing, and praying; and the reaſon is this, becauſe thoſe duties that are more ſolemn, are moſt conducible to a Chriſtians growth in grace; and therefore in thoſe duties nature will be moſt indefatigable, to diſturbe and interrupt you, and the devill will not fail to ſet thy heart at work to diſturb thee in thoſe duties, whereby his Kingdome is battered and aſſaulted,
5. That the leſſe men do prepare their hearts for duty, the more they ſhall be diſturbed by corrupt nature in duty. Greonham in his obſervations, takes notice of this: What is the reaſon that Chriſtians can never pray without diſtractions, nor hear without wandring thoughts? Oh man! (ſayes he) take my experience, didſt thou prepare more for duty, thou wouldeſt be leſſe diſtracted in duty. Phyſick doth the body little good if it be taken on a full ſtomack, and if the body be not prepared; ſo it is with duties and Ordinances, they will do thee little good, unleſſe thou doeſt firſt prepare thy ſelfe for them.
Poſit. 6 6. That the fleſh interrupts us more in thoſe duties which others perform, then in thoſe which we perform our ſelves. A Preacher when he is preaching a Sermon, he hath leſſe wandring thoughts in preaching, then he himſelf would have if he were a hearer, and why? but becauſe at ſuch a time his minde is buſied in thinking of the matter he hath to deliver to his Auditors. And ſo for any of you, ſuppoſe you were praying in a company, you would be leſſe apt to be diſtracted in that duty, becauſe popular applauſe, a reſpect to the company among whom you pray, they binde your thoughts, that they runne not aſtray, leſt you ſhould be confuſed in the duty; whereas if you did joyn in duty, then you would be more careleſſe, and diſtracted; and therefore you whoſe lot it is never to preach or pray in publick, do you look to your own hearts; for the fleſh is more apt to interrupt you in thoſe duties, wherein you joyn with others, th…n in thoſe which you your ſelfe perform.
Poſit. 7 7. That in the corruption of the fleſh in duties, it may be more violent after a long ſtanding in Religion, then it did appear to be upon your firſt converſion. At a mans firſt converſion happily he could pray, and not be diſtracted, but have his love, his joy, and his delight, and all his ſoul taken up with the ſervice; but in proceſſe of time, and after ſome continuance in the wayes of Religion, he may begin to grow flat and formal, perfunctory, accuſtomary in all his performances; and this was that which Auguſtine obſerved, Many at firſt converſion, they will pray with much feeling and fervency, but afterwards with coldneſſe and deadneſſe, loſing that vigour and warmth of affection, which they found in themſelves at firſt converſion.
Poſit. 8 8. That there is not a duty in all your life-time which you perform unto God, but there is ſome evill tincture of the fleſh cleaves to it; though the duty is good in it ſelf, yet there is ſome evill in it as it comes from thee. Prayer is good, and hearing is good, but theſe duties as they paſſe through the veſſel of thy defiled ſoul, they become defiled; inſo much that God might juſtly charge even upon regenerate men the ſins of their holy duties; When I would do good, Rom. 7.15.ſayes Paul, evill is preſent with me. It is true, the natural motions of the fleſh may be pared off, but ſtill there is a ſinful tincture which cleaves to thy duties. It is obſervable, that the ceremonial law which you read of, in the 28. of Exod. v. 38. Exod. 28.38.where you read that Aaron was to have a plate of pure gold upon his fore-head, when he went into the holy of holieſt, that he mighe bear the iniquity of the holy things of the children of Iſrael. And this notes, ſayes a Divine, that Jeſus Chriſt our fore-runner, he is gone into the holy of holieſt, and he by his interceſſion, and ſitting at the right hand of his Father, weares that plate of pure gold upon his fore-head, and there beares not onelyonly the iniquity of our lives, but the inquity of our holy things; and if this were not ſo, and did there not a viciouſneſſe cleave unto all our holy duties, then we might commend ſome duties to God without the mediation of Jeſus Chriſt; but becauſe there is no duty can be done without a tincture of evill cleaving to it, therefore you cannot ſtand before God in the beſt prayer that ever you made, nor in the beſt ſervice that ever you performed. We have need of a Chriſt, a Mediatour, not only for our ſins, but alſo for our duties.
Poſit. 9 9. That it is the moſt difficult thing in the world to keep the minde ſo cloſe to duty, that the fleſh ſhall not interrupt you in its performance. As Eliphaz reaſoned with Job, Job. 15.12,13.ſo may every man with his own heart: Why doth thine heart carry thee away, and what doth thine eyes winke at, that thou turneſt thy ſpirit againſt God, and letteſt ſuch words go out of thy mouth? Thus may every man reaſon with his own ſoule, and ſay, Why doth my heart carry me away, when my ſpirit would keep cloſe to God? Auguſtine hath an excellent note upon 2 Sam. 7.27. 2 Sam. 7.27. Dixit ſe inveniſſe cor ſuum, quaſi ſoleret fugere, & ille ſequi quaſi fugitivum. Auguſt. Nihil eſt corde meo fugacius. Bernard. Poſit, 10.upon Davids words, I have found in my heart to make a prayer unto thee; as if David would intimate, that he often loſt his heart in prayer; as if David did many times come to pray, but could not finde his heart. It is the hardeſt thing in the world, when you come to pray to finde your hearts, and when you have found your hearts, to keep them,
10. That the blood of Jeſus Chriſt wipes off that guilt and filth, that cleaves to your holy duties. God knowes that when you come to worſhip him, you are men, and not Angels; you are the ſpirits of good men imperfect, and therefore God doth not expect from you that your ſervice ſhould be perfect, becauſe your ſtate is imperfect; therefore here is your comfort, that your defects in duty, ſhall never damne you who are regenerate ſoules; thou mayeſt be often hindred in duty, but that interruption ſhall never damne thee, Jeſus Chriſt wipe off the ſtain of all thy duties. In the ceremonial law you read that the Altar for the burnt-offering, Exod. 27.4,5.it had a grate made for it of net-work of braſſe, that the duſt and the aſhes might fall out, and ſo be carried away: This is a type of the interceſſion of Jeſus Chriſt, that though in your ſervices and ſacrifices to God, though you have much affection and zeal, yet alſo there is much aſhes of corruption; and as that grate was made to carry away the aſhes, ſo Jeſus Chriſt he is the Mediatour, which will carry away all your defects in the ſervice of God. And this ſhould incourage the people of God, though you are weak in duty, yet neglect not duty; though you are forgetful in hearing, yet leave not to heare; and though diſtracted in praying, yet neglect not prayer; becauſe it is the office of Jeſus Chriſt to bear the iniquity of your holy things. Theſe are thoſe Poſitions, or Concluſions, that I deſired to premiſe before I came to handle the Queries. The point that I am to handle is this: That ſuch is the prevalency of corrupt nature even in regenerate men, that it doth oftentimes interrupt them in holy performances.
Doct. In the handling of this point, there are many particulars which I ſhall go through.
1. I ſhall prove the point that it is ſo.
2. I ſhall ſhew you how the fleſh doth hinder in duty.
3. Wherein the interruption of the fleſh doth moſt appear.
1. For the proof of the point, Rom. 7.18. foreign. Phil. 2.12. foreign.you have not only Pauls teſtimoy, but his own experience; how to perform the good I would, I finde not how to work it out; that is, to carry on a duty from the beginning to the end, it is the ſame word in the original, as that in Philip. 2.12. where we are commanded to work out our ſalvation with feare and trembling. As he complain of himſelfe, and as he gives you his experience, ſo we may conferre all our experiences with his, and ſay, that how to do that which is good we finde not. As ruſt cleaves to the iron, ſo cleaves the fleſh to our holy duties. In general, do not our own hearts tell us that there is much of the world in them? and are there not many vain and impertinent thoughts in the duties we perform to God? and that not only in general, but in particular duties? in prayer, how doth the fleſh interrupt us by vain and impertinent thoughts, and wrong ends? how doth it dead our affections, damp our zeal, and ſtraiten our hearts? in hearing, how doth the fleſh caſt in prejudices, and miſconſtructions, infidelity, and forgetfulneſſe? In meditation, how doth it make the minde roving and wandring up and down, ſo that thou canſt not bring thy meditations to a perfect iſſue? In diſcourſe, how doth the fleſh mingle cenſures and vain glory? when thou comeſt to the Lords Supper, how doth the fleſh hinder thee that thou canſt not exerciſe godly ſorrow, that thy love is not inflamed, and that thy joy in Chriſt is not elevated? Therefore what cauſe have to complain, as Auguſtine, when he ſaw a ſhepherd tie a ſtone to the legge of a bird, and the bird aſſaying to fly upwards, was ſtill pulled down again by the ſtone: Juſt thus, ſayes he, is it with my ſoule; fain would I ſo are aloft by holy meditation, but there is a ſtone tied to my legge; a corrupt nature, whereby I am coutinually pulled down.
Queſt. The next Queſtion is, how doth the fleſh hinder us in holy performances?
I ſhall confine my anſwer to theſe two particulars; there are theſe two wayes how the fleſh doth hinder us in holy duties.
1. By ſoliciting men to abate, and leſſen their duties.
2. By injecting, and caſting in vain and impertinent thoughts.
Anſw. 1. By ſoliciting men to abate in their duty; if ſo be nature can prevaile with you to omit duty, or not to be ſo much in duty as thou haſt been heretofore, to pray leſſe, and hear leſſe; herein is a great policy of thy corrupt heart, to perſwade the heart that thou needeſt not be ſo zealous, becauſe remiſſe acts do weaken habits; to pray remiſſely, and coldly, will in time bring thee not to pray at all.—Now to thoſe who are thus intangled by the fleſh, that they decay in duty; to ſuch I have three things to ſay.
1. You have not leſſe need to pray, nor perform duty, then in former time, and therefore why ſhould you leſſen your duties; you have not leſs temptations from Satan, no leſſe corruptions in thy ſoule, nor fewer ſpiritual wants, no leſſe troubles on the Church; and therefore let not nature prevaile with you to decay in duty.
2. As it is a deceit of the heart in ſinne, to bring you from little ſinnes to great ſinnes: ſo in grace it is the deceit of nature, to bring you from doing little in duty, at laſt to do nothing at all.
3. Gradual abatements and decayes in duty, may be as dangerous to thy ſoule, as total omiſſions; and thou mayeſt go to hell as well for the one, as for the other; not but that total neglects do more provoke God. Though a man is in more danger of preſent death, that is ſick of a fever, then he that is ſick of a lingring conſumption; yet the one will kill as ſurely as the other. Men that caſt off Religion, they die by a burning fever, but thou which decayeſt in Religion, thou mayeſt die of a lingring conſumption; thou mayeſt conſume and conſume, untill thou comeſt to a meer skeleton in Religion, and to have no verdure, nor vigour in thy ſpirit, in the exerciſes of holineſſe.
Anſw. 2. And chiefly, the fleſh interrupts in duty, by injecting and caſting in vain thoughts, and impertinent, when thou art about duty. Now thoſe thoughts which the fleſh caſts in, they are of two ſorts: either ſuch which for the matter of them are lawful, or elſe, which are for their matter unlawful.
1. Levit. 28.12. compared with Prov. 26.1. Though it be not cogitatio mali, yet it is cogitatio mala.The fleſh will caſt in thoughts which are for their matter lawful, but onelyonly unſeaſonable; And I may ſay of theſe as the Scripture ſpeaks of rain; rain in ſeaſon is a bleſſing; but rain in harveſt is a curſe; ſo good thoughts in their ſeaſon are bleſſed, but a good thought coming into your minde, to divert, or diſtract you in a good work you are about, that thought is ſinful; when you are hearing a Sermon, then to be thinking of prayer; and when you are at prayer, then to be thinking of hearing; theſe thoughts are unſeaſonable, and and therefore ſinful. As in Printing, though the letters be never ſo fair, yet if they are miſplaced, they would make non-ſenſe. As that motion, Luke 12.13. was lawful: Maſter, command my brother to divide the inheritance; but yet it was not ſeaſonable, becauſe it was propounded while Chriſt was preaching.
2. Sometimes again, the fleſh will inject thoughts which are for their matter ſinful; and thus the Prophet complaineth of the Iſraelites: They come unto thee as the people cometh, and they ſit before thee as my people, and they hear thy words, but they will not do them; for with their mouth they ſhew much love, but their heart goeth after their covetouſneſſe; Ezek. 33.31.even in their duties they had ſinful thoughts how to accompliſh their covetous deſires.
Quere. 3 3. The third Querie is to ſhew, wherein the prevalency of the fleſh to interrupt us in holy duties, doth appear?
I ſhall anſwer this querie by theſe two particulars.
1. That the fleſh labours to interrupt men in the manner, how they do duty.
2. In their ends, why they perform duty. Theſe are the two chief attempts of the fleſh in this particular,
1. The fleſh interrupts a man chiefly in the manner how he performes duty; and there are theſe ſeveral wayes whereby the fleſh hinders a man in the manner of his duty.
1. The fleſh makes a man perform duty weariedly, without alacrity; Eccleſ. 12.12.that as Solomon ſayes, Much ſtudy it is a wearineſs to the fleſh; and if much ſtudy, why, then religious exerciſes: when the minde is taken up with them, the devill and a mans own nature are ready to divert and interrupt them, eſpecially a mans nature is apt to be wearied: and hence it is that you have ſuch preſſing perſwaſions, that you would not be weary of well-doing, Gal. 6.9. 2 Theſ. 3.13.& what is the reaſon hereof, but becauſe of the corruption of a mans heart, which is apt to make him to be tired in holy exerciſes? Mal. 1.13.Things that act naturally, act unweariedly; and therefore the Sunne is not weary of ſhining, nor the fire weary of burning, neither the Sea of ebbing and flowing, becauſe theſe are natural motions. It is natural to a man to commit ſinne, and therefore the Scripture ſayes, that men are not weary of committing iniquity; but to do that which is holy, and to act grace in any duty, it is not onelyonly above, but againſt nature. Hence in Scripture hell it is compared to a pit, and heaven to a hill; now it is an eaſie matter for a childe that can but go, to tumble into a pit, but it is a hard matter to climbe up a hill; you may eaſily fall into the bottomleſs pis, but the way to heaven it is a way up the hill, and hard to get up; and therefore, in the ſecond of Iſaiah, The mountain of the Lord is ſaid to be eſtabliſhed on the top of the mountaines, and exalted above the hills; and this is, becauſe duties they are againſt nature, 'tis a going againſt winde and tide.
I remember a Divine he doth illuſtrate the corruption of a mans heart diſturbing in duty, by a compariſon of a birds being in an egge; while it is in the ſhell it cannot ſtirre, but that bird aſſoon as ever it is hatcht, and the ſhell broken, then it is of a lively motion: thus a man in duty, whileſt he is peſtered with fleſh and blood, he is like a bird in the ſhell, that cannot ſtir; but let once the ſhell be broken; let corruption of nature be ſubdued, and let grace get the upper hand, and then he is as a bird out of the ſhell, that can move and act vigorouſly, and lively in holy duties.
The Prophet Zechariah ſpeaks of thoſe that had wings, and the winde in their wings, Zech. 5.9.to note the ſwiftneſſe (as Expoſitors render the ſenſe of that place) and ſpeed that thoſe reformers made; but we in our way to heaven, have neither wings nor winde, naturally going againſt winde and tide, and are glad to run continually, Heb. 12.1.which is apt to make us weary, eſpecially when it is up the hill. Herein the corruption of your hearts appeares, to make you perform duty weariedly. It is as a clogge to hinder us, and therefore the Apoſtle commands us to lay aſide every weight, and every ſinne that doth ſo eaſily beſet us. Heb. 12.1.Corrupt nature it is a weight, and you know if a man run a race with a weight upon him, he will ſoon be tired out.
2. Corrupt nature makes you perform duty wandringly; that as in the Sea one wave followes another, and as in the aire the clouds follow the rain: ſo in the heart, one impertinent thought followes another; the corruption of a mans heart makes him vain in his thoughts. Whileſt thou art, O man, in Gods houſe, the devill is in thy heart as in his work-houſe, forming and framing many contemplative vain thoughts in thy minde, whereby thou art carried away from God. You have a notable paſſage to this purpoſe, if you compare two Scriptures together, and they are both the words of Solomon: In Eccleſ. 2.14. you read, that a wiſe mans eyes are ſaid to be in his head, Eccleſ 2.14. compared with Prov. 17.24.but a fool walketh in darkneſs; Now if you look to the natural ſituation of the eye, is it ſcated in the head, as of a wiſe man, ſo alſo of a foole; what then is Solomons meaning, when he ſaith, that the eyes of a wiſe man are in his head? his meaning is, that a wiſe mans eyes they are fixed and not wandring; but what is the fooles eye? Solomon tells you in Prov. 17.24. that the eyes of a foole are in the ends of the earth; that is, he hath a wandring heart, and is no wayes intent in the worſhip of God. Prov. 4.25.Let thine eyes look right on, and let thy eye-lids look ſtreight before thee. This is Solomons advice; the meaning is, that the thoughts of thy heart ſhould never turn aſide, neither to the right hand, nor unto the left; but this is the miſery of a godly man, that the fleſh makes him perform duty wandringly; as Auguſtine complaines, My hearr is gone from me, and I cannot catch it; and if I do eatch it, I cannot keep it. You know what a ſlippery thing an Eele is, the harder you graſpe it, the more apt it is to ſlip out of your hands; ſo it is with thy heart, thou mayeſt labour to hold thy heart faſt, but thy ſlippery heart breaks away from thee, do what thou canſt; and whence comes this, but by reaſon of the pravity of thy nature?
3. The fleſh makes thee perform duty confiding in duty, ſo to perform duty as to reſt in duty and if the devil cannot diſturb you by injecting wandring thoughts, he will labour to diſturb you by caſting in vain tonfiding thoughts; this is an evill which you are to watch againſt. We are they (ſayes the Apoſtle, ſpeaking to the Philippians) who worſhip God in the ſpirit, and rejoyce in Chriſt Jeſus, and have no confidence in the fleſh; Phil. 3.3.that is, we do not depend upon our performances. Truſt not in lying words, ſayes the Prophet, ye who ſay, The Temple of the Lord, the Temple of the Lord; This was the devils policy, Jer. 7.4.if he could not make them ſlight the Temple, he would endeavour to carry them to the other extreame, to rely upon the Temple, and the worſhip there, and therefore the Lord calls them lying words. Thus it was with the children of Iſrael. 1 Sam. 4.2.The ſtory mentions a battel fought by the Philiſtines againſt Iſrael, wherein there fell of Iſrael 4000 men, and when they had received this great loſſe, the reſidue went to inquire the reaſon of this hand of God againſt them, and they concluded that it was becauſe the Ark of God was not among them; well, ſay they, Let us fetch the Ark of the Covenant of God from Shiloh, that when it cometh, it may ſave us out of our enemies hands: they do ſo; but when they had got the ark among them, 1 Sam. 4.10.the ſtory tells us, that in a ſecond battel, they loſt 30000. men. 1 Sam. 4.10.Now what was the reaſon why they had worſe ſucceſſe when they had the Ark among them, then they had before; the reaſon was, becauſe they depended upon the Ark, that outward badge and teſtimony of Gods preſence, and therefore God would puniſh their carnal confidence; this being the policy of the devill, if he cannot diſtract you in duty, yet he will labour to make you rely upon it.