A Scripture-Map of the Wilderness of Sin, Treatise · Part 4 · Chapter 23
CHAP. XXIII. Contains diſſwaſives from leaning upon ſinne or Satan:
I ſhall onelyonly ſpeake three other words, to beat off your elbowes from thoſe three other leaning-ſtocks, viz Sinne, Satan, and the World; and then I ſhall by the help of my Lord, as the cloſe of the diſcourſe, ſhew you the excellent advantage of leaning upon Chriſt.
Firſt, Leane not to ſin. This is the verieſt vanity,Lean not to ſinne. For 1. This is the verieſt vanity. and it will be the verieſt vexation of Spirit.
Firſt, This is the vreieſt vanitie. If you doe but believe ſcripture, you may eaſily be induced to believe this. What better termes doth ſcripture beſtow upon ſinne, then ſuch as theſe, a vain ſhew, or ſhadow, a deceipt, a lie, or make the moſt of it, and it is but a Cobweb. Now if you will but take the Spirit of God to beare a true teſtimony under theſe terms unto your ſinnes, then how vaine a thing is it to leane unto them, even your ſelves being Judges?
Becauſe 1. Sin a lye.Firſt, He that leans to a known ſinne (if the Bible be true) leanes undoubtedly to a known lye. If the Crutch in his right hand be a ſinne, let Iſaiah ſpeake whether the Crutch in his right hand be not a lie, Iſai. 44.20. They that follow after ſin, follow after leaſing; and they that hold faſt ſin, hold faſt deceit, Jer. 8.5. And therefore 'tis not ſtrange that they that doe ſo, ſhould be therefore branded to love vanitie, Pſal. 4.2. What foole ſo fooliſh, as to truſt a known lyar, eſpecially in a known lye? And yet alas! what ſinner is there more wiſe? Wilt thou lean upon that which is not, but onelyonly ſeems to be? Sinne is not good, ſinne can bring no good. Sinne is not really pleaſurable, it is not truly profitable, when it ſeemes to bee ſuch, it is not ſuch, but doth lie: In this caſe thou muſt either put the lie upon the Scripture or upon Sin; I believe thou dareſt not doe the former, and therefore why is it that thou wilt not do the latter. Or
2ly, At moſt 'tis but a Spiders web.Secondly, If ſinne have any being at all, make the beſt of it, it is but as a Spiders web. A poore thing, you'l ſay, for an Houſe to lean upon, when all it's ſupport is in very deed, by leaning on the Houſe: Take but downe the Houſe, and you need not take downe the Cobweb. My Brethren, if Scripture be true, then the very beſt head that ſinners can bring their work unto, is but the ſpinning of a Spiders web, a poore thing, you'l ſay, and a very vanity for the ſoule, which ſhould be an houſe for God to dwell in, to leane upon, and yet read, Iſai. 59.4, 5. They truſt in vanitie (there's my charge againſt ſinners) they ſpeak lies, conceiving miſchiefe, and bring forth iniquitie: they ſpin Spiders webs, there's the proofe. Would not he be accounted a fooliſh one, that would not yeeld to the taking downe of a Cobweb, for feare leaſt his Houſe ſhould fall? And what ſhall we account of fooliſh ſinners, that thinke that if their ſoules be but ſwept, and their ſinnes; their Spiders webs but taken downe, that then they ſhall fall alſo, and that their Reformation would be their ruine? Miſerable madneſſe! why, Sinne is not the Houſe, and thy Soule the Cobweb; but thy Soule is the Houſe, and ſinne the Spiders web. Thy ſoule hath not it's dependence, being, and ſubſiſtence upon ſinne, but ſin hath it's dependence by hanging upon thy ſoule. It's ſad that ſo many cleanly and houſwiſely for the world, that cannot indure Spider or Cobweb in their Houſes, ſhould to freely ſuffer both in their hearts, and thinke that they goe about to undoe them, that would ſweep them downe. Oh! downe with Spider, and Web, and All; down with Satan and Sinne too, and inſtead of danger, i'le warrant thee decency, and that thy ſoule ſhall become a Temple for the Holy Ghoſt to dwell in. But if thou wilt ſtill conceipt that thou canſt not be, or ſubſiſt without thy ſin, when in very deed it is thy ſinne that cannot be, or ſubſiſt without thee, know from the mouth of the Lord, Job 8.14. That thy hope ſhall be cut off, becauſe thy truſt is a Spiders web.
Secondly,2ly, This will be the verieſt vexation of Spirit. 1. If this Reed bear not up the hand, it will pierce the hand. This will be the verieſt vexation of spirit which will eaſily appeare in theſe ſeverall particulars.
1. Sin is not of an indifferent nature. If it cannot profit thee to leane upon it, it will be ſure to prejudice thee. This is that very Aegyptian Reed, 2 King, 18.21. That ſtaffe of Aegypt, whereon if a man lean, it will not onelyonly breake, and ſo ſhrink from under his hand, but it will go into his hand, and pierce it thorough. Oh! what is that which leaves the deepeſt markes behind it in wounded Conſciences and diſtreſſed Spirits, but this, or the like? I have ſinned, and truſted in my wickedneſſe, and ſtrengthned my ſelf in my ſin. When a man flees the judgements of the Lord, and leanes to his ſinne, untill the guilt and horror thereof meet him, he is compared to a man fleeing from a Lyon, and going into the Houſe,2ly, The harder you lean upon ſin, the heavier it will lie upon you. and leaning his hand on the wall, and a Serpent bites him, Amos 5.19.
2ly, The harder you leane upon ſin now, the heavier will ſin lie upon you another day. What is obſerved of the Iriſh Nations Genius, that while they are Underlings, they are faire and flattering, but ever plotting for the Maſtery, and the more they are truſted, or leaned unto, the more eaſily they attaine it, but their little fingers are as others loynes, when they have gotten the upper hand of thoſe, that by leaning to them, were prevailed upon by them; this may be verily ſaid of ſinne, the more you adventure to leane upon it, the harder it will be ſure to lie upon you.
1. In the Commanding power: ſinne will not long bee a ſervant, when once you come to truſt it: Sinne promiſed to be your ſervant at the firſt, but you muſt be it's ſlaves afterwards. Though ſinne will be daily offering its ſervice (ſuch as it is) to the Saints, as I remember the Iriſh uſed to doe to the Engliſh, before their maſſacre in the late Rebellion; yet the way to keepe it from Maſtery, is to keepe from truſting it. If once you be deceived (ſo farre as to truſt it, for then I am ſaid to be deceive, when I lean'd or truſted to a man, and found him not according to my truſt repoſed in him) I ſay, if once you be thus deceived by ſinne, ſinne will be ſervant no longer, but you ſhall be preſently found ſerving divers luſts and pleaſures, Tit. 3.3.
2ly, In the condemning power of it. Sirs, The more you put ſtreſs upon ſinne now, the more weight of horror, and guilt, and condemnation ſinne will be ſure to lay upon you afterwards. You will finde Scripture more expreſſe to this pupoſe, then you willingly would have it. I ſhall give you but one proofe, and thinke that enough, Iſai. 30.12.13. Thus ſaith the holy One of Iſrael, becauſe you truſt in perverſeneſſe, and ſtaie thereupon, therefore this iniquitie ſhall be as a breach ready to fall, ſwelling out in an high wall, whoſe breaking comes ſuddainly at an inſtant. Your ſinne will not alwaies be your Underling; but if you make it your wall, and leane upon it, and ſtay thereupon, it will quickly get above your head, and grow higher then you; and the more you leane, the ſooner it will ſwell; and the harder you leane, the heavier it will fall upon your heads; you ſhall not need to call to Mountaines to fall upon you, this high wall of your own building, and whereunto you truſted, will be weight enough upon your Conſciences, and vexation enough unto your ſpirits.
3ly, Lean on ſin, and looke that God ſhould leave you; 3ly, Lean on ſin, and God wil leave you.he that truſts in ſin, hath a God on this ſide God, he makes ſinne his God, and then (as Hoſ. 10.3. What ſhould a King do unto us? ſo) what ſhould God do unto him? What will he doe? why he tells you, Hoſ. 4.17. Ephraim is joyned unto Idols, let him alone. When men are joyned to ſinne, that is, hold ſin as hard, as ſinne holds them, and ſtick unto ſinne as cloſe as ſinne ſticks unto them: God will ſay, (and they had as good he ſhould ſay any thing) let ſuch a ſoul alone.
Laſtly, Though God leave thee for the preſent,4ly, The harder you preſs upon ſin, the harder will God preſſe upon you. yet will he leane the harder upon thee another day, the harder thou leaneſt upon ſinne now. What a dreadfull paſſage is that, Job 27.20, 22. Terrours ſhall take hold upon him, for God ſhall caſt upon him, and not ſpare, though he would fain flie out of his hand. You have this dreadfull judgement annexed to this ſad ſinne, Jer. 13.35. This is thy lot, the portion of thy meaſures from me, ſaith the Lord, becauſe thou haſt forgotten me, and truſted in falſehood: this is thy lot from me. Oh! that's a killing word: It's uſually the lot of Saints to ſuffer from the World, and to have all the loades laid on them, that wicked men can lay; yea, ſometimes 'tis their lot to lie under all the loads that they can poſſibly lay upon themſelves, and their own Conſciences can preſſe them down withall, but all this is little to the other; for all this while there is a God to take off their loads from them. But now when God ſhall ſay, this is thy lot from me, and I will lay much weight upon thee, becauſe thou didſt truſt in falſhood, and lay as much weight upon thy ſinne as poſſibly thou couldeſt; and I the Lord will preſſe hard upon thee with mine owne hand of wrath, and will not ſpare, becauſe thou didſt leane hard upon thy ſinne, and ſparedſt not; Heaven and Earth ſtand aſtoniſhed, and tremble, O Hell! at the Eaſeleſſe, Endleſſe, and Remedileſſe vexation that will ſurpriſe that Spirit.
Leane not to Satan. 1. He is a knowne lyar.2ly, Lean not to Satan; for
1. If Sin be the web, Satan is the Spider. If Sin be the lie, Satan's the lyer; and which of theſe is to be leaned unto? As for Satan, he was a lyer from the beginning, he hath continued a lyer, ever ſince; he got his Kingdom by lying, he continues it by lying; he manageth his whole Oeconomy, and family-diſpenſations by lying, and therefore he is called the Father of it, Jo. 8.44. And is this thy Counſellor? thy friend, thy boſome-friend? Is this hee that ſo many of the world lean unto? Alas! the fooliſhneſſe of the children of men, or madneſſe rather of the children of the Devill! alas, the frequent bewitchedneſſe of the children of God!
2ly. A ſworne enemy.Secondly, Satan is not onelyonly a known lyer, but he is alſo thy ſworn Enemie; therefore what madneſſe is it, for thy ſoule to leane to him? Will a man conſult with his Enemie (whoſe plot it is to take away his life, or his eſtate) how he may doe to ſave them? Or will he (which is much more) lean to his Enemies counſell, if he ſhould entertaine a diſcourſe with him? What is ſaid of the Unicorne, Job 39.11. Wilt thou truſt him, becauſe his ſtrength is great? I may much more ſay ſo to thy ſoule concerning Satan. Are we ever the more confident in our Adverſaries, becauſe they are the more potent? Strength is the onelyonly thing in Satan, which might induce thee to leane unto thoſe Principalities and Powers; yea, but that ſtrength is in an Enemies keeping; and therefore there's leſſe reaſon for truſting him. Or doſt thou thinke that he will lay downe his Emnity, becauſe he takes up a flattery? Let the wiſe Man counſell thee, Prov. 26.24, 25. He that hateth diſſembleth with his lips, and layeth up deceit within him: when he ſpeaketh fair, believe him not, for there are ſeven abominations in his heart.
Thirdly, You ſay of knaviſh Cuſtomers, 3ly, The more you leane to him, the more he will preſſe upon you.the more you truſt them, the more they trouble you; and the more they have of your Confidence, the more you have of their Companie; the way to be rid of them, is to give them no Credit, neither to truſt to their Promiſes, nor to their Payments: I am ſure it is, and will be thus with Satan. Oh! how he loves to trade where he may bee truſted! you complaine, Satan's alwaies troubling you, and who can helpe it? you are alwaies truſting him: Truſt him leſſe, and hee will trouble you leſſe. In this ſort reſiſt him, and in that ſort he will flee from you, Jam, 4.7.
Laſtly, Lean unto Satan, and farewell all confederacy and correſpondence with the Lord. They ſay,4ly, Leane to him, and God will leave you. if our State will leane to the Portugall, they muſt breake with the Spaniard, for theſe are abſolute Enemies. I am ſure, if you leane to Satan, God will break with you; for there's no reconciling Chriſt and Belial. Thus reſting on the Lord, and covenanting with Hell, are made termes of fulleſt oppoſition, Iſai. 28.12, 15.