The Sinfulness of Evil Thoughts, Treatise · Chapter 6
CHAP. VI. Sins of the thoughts in reſpect of God, and firſt of having no thoughts of God.
VVEE ſhall begin with thoſe thoughts which concern God. Where in the firſt place, The firſt fai…ing of the thoughts is in having no thoughts of God. This is a ſin of Omiſsion, or defect, but a great one. By this David deſcribeth the wicked man, God is not in all his thoughts; Pſal. 10. 4.or as others read it, All his thoughts are, There is no God: This is the firſt kind of Atheiſme, a kind of Privy, or Privative Atheiſme, and the other reading is Poſitive and downright Atheiſme. There are ſix kinds of Atheiſts, and Atheiſme mentioned in Scripture.
1. The Negative Atheiſt, who hath not God in all his thoughts.
2. The Poſitive Atheiſt, All whoſe thoughts are there is no God.
3. The Profeſſed Atheiſt, who ſtudyeth to deſtroy the Deity and ſticketh not to affirm, there is no God.Pſal. 14. 1.
4. The Practicall Atheiſt, who lives as if there were no God. Pſal. 36. 1. The wickedneſſe of the wicked ſaith within my heart, there is no fear of God before his eyes. It is all one not to acknowledge a God, and not to fear, ſerve and obey him. Pſal. 14. 4. and 53. 4. The Atheiſt is charged with, and convicted by this, That he calleth not on God. This proves him a Practicall, though he be not a Profeſſed Atheiſt.
5. There is a Profeſsing (not profeſſed) Atheiſt, who Profeſſeth to know, love, and honour God, but by his workes denyeth him, being abominable diſobedient, and to every good work reprobate, as the Apoſtle ſaith. Such lewd Tit. 1. 16.actions and converſations proclaim aloud that he hath denyed the God that is above, as Job ſaid.Job 31. 28.
6. There is Interpretative, or conſequentiall Atheiſme. So the unbeleeving Gentiles are ſaid to be foreign Eph. 2. 12.Without Chriſt, and without God (or Atheiſts) in the world; becauſe ſtrangers to him, without Covenant, promiſe, ordinance, and ſo much as pretence to the true Church, and truth of religion. So when we withdraw our dependance upon God and rely upon an arme of fleſh, or Satan, ſeeking to witches, and wizards: This is by conſequence or interpretation plain Atheiſme, for is there no God for thee in Iſrael to enquire of, that thou ſendeſt to Baalzebub the God of Ekron to enquire 2 King. 1. 3.of him: Now which of all theſe is the worſt Atheiſt I ſhall not ſay; They are all very bad, and this firſt very Dangerous, though we little regard it, To have no thoughts of God. The profeſſed Atheiſt would dipſute God out of Heaven, this Negative Atheiſt ſhuts him out of his own heart, and ſaith with the Legioniſt, What have I to do with thee. Torment me not. If Mar. 5. 7.he cannot ſay to God, depart from me, and cauſe the Holy one of Iſrael to ceaſe before him, as they ſay, Job 21. 14. Eſay. 30. 11. Yet doth he by his evil heart of unbelief, and uncogitancy depart from the living God. We commonly reckon ſins of commiſsion, ſins, as to ly, ſteal, or to think evil it may be; But of omiſsions, eſpecially in thoughts, who once taketh notice? whoſe heart ſmites him for this, I have no thoughts of my God. My heart is like Jericho ſhut Joſh. 5. 1.up, there is no ſuch thought comes in, there is no ſuch thought goes out, or peepes and breathes out. There is none ſaith where is God my maker, who giveth us ſongs in the night? Job 35. 10. whereas God made man purpoſely for himſelf, and gave man this Cogitative faculty, chiefly for this end, that he might in his mind and thoughts better meditate, conceive and comprehend God, then in his words expreſſe him. It is a great and grievous offence, the Lord complaines of it in the Prophet Jeremy, My people have forgotten me dayes without number. Out of ſight, out of mind. But can a Mayd Jer. 2. 32.forget her ornaments, or a Bride her attire? yet my people have forgotten me.
The wanton Lover hath his Miſtreſſe ſo running in his mind, that he weares her name in his hatband, writes it in every leaf, cuts it in every tree, graves it in every glaſſewindow where he comes, and ſhould we forget the name of our God? Some commemorate Pſal. 44.their Founders, ſome praiſe their Benefactors, ſome have their minds run on their Chariots, ſome on their Horſes, ſome of their Bonds, ſome of their Bags, and ſhall not we remember the name of the Lord our God? I have read of ſuch a peſtilentiall diſeaſe once at Athens, as took away the memory of ſuch as were infected with it, that it is ſaid, they forgat even their own names. A godly man will ſay with David, Let my right hand ſooner forget her skill, to play and pleaſe me, or her care to feed me, and let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth, and forget to ſpeak, rather than my heart ſhould forget to think of God. How divine was that of the Poet?
Praeſentem Praebet quaelibet herba Deum.
He could, he ſaid, read God in every Leaf, and found his name written on every green Herb, and what a ſhame is it to us, if we cannot read God in every Leaf of Scripture, and find his Name written in our hearts.
Holy Ignatius, could ſay, ſuch was his Love to Chriſt, and deſire after him, that if his heart were opened when he was dead, they ſhould find Jeſus Chriſt written there. It is a ſtrange ſtory, which I have had from very good hands, that Mr. Donne, a known Chirurgeon of this City, took out of the heart of a Gentleman, who died of Love, a Stone, having much of the reſemblance of the Centlewoman beloved, ſuch impreſſion (it ſeems) naturall affection may make. Oh that the Love of Chriſt were ſet as a Seal as a Signet Cant. 8. 6.upon our hearts, that we might have Chriſt formed in us, we ſhould never fail of this ſuit, nor dy of this diſeaſe. Some have been ſick of this Love, none have died: It is ſaid, that the Armes of the Duke of Roan, which are Fuſils, or Lozenges, are to be found in all the Wood and Stone of his Country; and that the Armes of the Shugburyes in Warwick-Shire, which are Stars, are found in every ſtone of the Manor of Shugbury. So that break a Stick or Stone in the one, or any Stone in the other, and you have a Fuſil, or a Star. Oh that our hearts did bear the reſemblance of God, and Efſigies of Chriſt, whoſe we are, and whoſe Effigies and remembrance we ſhould ever bear in our minds. But alas! I fear if many of our hearts ſhould be opened, we ſhould find, as Q. Mary ſaid, Callis there, the world there, Vanity written there; No thoughts of God there; Their heart as the firſt Chaos without form and void, and nothing but a meer vacuity, and darkneſſe with…ll, covering the face of this Deep, the heart. Be aſtoniſhed O Chriſtian, and aſhamed Oh Atheiſt; that thou ſhouldeſt have room for thoughts of huſband, wife, parent, child, treaſure, pleaſure, of buſineſſe and diſports, and none for God. Canſt thou not forget a friend, a Patron, a Benefactor? and canſt thou forget God. Oh how ſad is it, that the Pulſe of our thoughts is beating from morning to night, whether we eat, drink, labour, reſt, walk or talk, ſtill the thoughts are ſtirring with a reſtleſſe motion, tha… among all theſe thoughts we ſhould have none of God. For an Ephah full of thoughts of the world, as heavy as Lead, yet carried on with eaſe as with wings, the wings of the wind, there ſhould not be ſo much as an Omer full of thoughts Zech. 5. 8.of God. That when head akes, back is ready to break, and braynes to crack, with a load of cares, and thoughts of the world, thou ſhouldeſt not have ſo much as one ſingle and ſerious thought of God. Reader conſider this. Is this to be a man or beaſt? a Chriſtian or worldling? You cannot ſerve Mat. 6. 24.God, and cleave to Mammon. Had any of us who live at London, a Father or Child at York, an Eſtate in New-England, our minds would be there ſometimes, there would be writing and ſending, and enquiring, and diſcourſing, and going thither too may be; and can we ſay, we have relations, and expectations, and treaſure in heaven, a Father a Saviour, an Inheritance there, and no thoughts there?
How happy a man was David, who could ſay, I ſet the Lord always before me, he is at Pſal. 16. 8.my right hand, therefore I ſhall not be moved, q. d. He is neither our of ſight nor out of mind to me. How happy againe was he who could ſay, How precious are thy thoughts to Pſal. 139. 17, 18.me O God! how great is the ſum of them: if I ſhould count them they are more in number then the ſands; How many of us may ſay, how ſtrange and unwelcome to us are the thoughts of thee O God: how ſmall the ſum of them, if I ſhould count them they are fewer in number then the ſand in the empty part of the Hour-glaſſe, where there may be found a few ſcattering duſts, when my thoughts of the world are like the whole meaſure of the ſand run out into the lower part of the glaſſe. Againe he ſaith, when I awake I am ſtill with Ibid.thee, as if he ſhould ſay; Lord, I have not onelyonly remembred thee in my bed, and meditated on thee in the night watches, Pſal. 63. 6. But the firſt and laſt thing I do, is, while I am waking, to be with thee, thinking of thee, talking to thee; It would trouble me if I did not think of thee in ſleep, if then I could think of any thing, for even when I ſleep thou art with me; Thou compaſſeſt my path, and my bed, and thy thoughts are to me thoughts of peace, all the night long: But as ſoon as I awake, I am with thee, as ſoon as I come to my ſelf, and a throng of thoughts come preſſing to the door of my heart, I ſay to the reſt ſtand by, let firſt the thoughts of God come in, and if there be another of his Companions, let him come in, ſo all the day▪ let my heart be taken up with entertaining theſe gueſts, and when late and dark night comes, I part not willingly with them, till overcome with ſleep, I drop a ſleep with one of theſe in my mind, and when I awake I am at it again. Oh happy he that could, and happy we if we can ſay ſo!
We would account him a dry Preacher, who cannot make a Sermon of an eaſie and copious Text, him a mean Scholar, who can make no diſcourſe of an excellent an ordinary Theme, and him a weak Lawyer ſure who hath not a word to ſay in the cleareſt Cauſe. A bad Stomack that muſt needs be, which cannot pick out a handſom Dinner out of the Richeſt Feaſt: And a Silly ſhiftleſſe fellow, he who could uſe no meanes, were he in the Syrians Tents, where there was Treaſure to be had for carrying, if he took none with him. Oh! But there is no ſuch Text, Theme, Cauſe, no ſuch Feaſt and Treaſure, as Communion with, and Meditation of God is. But what dry, poor, ſtomackleſſe, beggerly Chriſtians are we, that can think, ſpeak, utter nothing, pick out, carry away nothing, where there is ſuch ſtore? Complain not oh weak Memory, oh dull Invention! But ſee and bewail it, oh vile Worldly Heart, oh baſe Carnall Affection!
Luther ſaid, he that had but one word of God to his Text and could not make a ſermon of it, would never make a good preacher. Luth. Col.