Instructions, shewing how a gracelesse heart may obtain a Treasure of good.

A Third Use is of Direction, how a poor soul may be furnished with a rich and suitable heart-treasure. Now this is useful to sinners and Saints, 'tis the latter to whom I shall principally address my self. But because the treasure of true grace is absolutely necessary, I shal lay down some few directions for the graceless soul, that it may have a right principle, without which it cannot bring forth one good thought, word, or work: this is the habit without which there can be no gracious acts, this is the root, without which there can be no fruit unto God, this is that stock to trade with, without which there can be no trading with God, [Note 1] or true heaping up of the forementioned treasure of sanctifying truths, spiritual graces, heart-melting experiences, or heart-chearing comforts: I know the School-men have large disputes about the generating, acquiring, or infusing of habits, as whether there be any habits from nature? or caused by acts, or by one act? or whether habits be infused by God? but we must distinguish betwixt inferiour habits, that are meerly natural, and spiritual, gracious habits that are supernatural, these are of an heavenly extract and original, yet we are to wait upon God in the use of his appointed meanes, [Note 2] so saith the Apostle, Phil 2:12, 13.— Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God which worketh in you, both to will and to do, of his own good pleasure: This text both confuteth the speculative free-willer, and convinceth the practical loyterer, grace is to be had from God in his way, though 'tis not purchased by man's working. I purposely wave the School-mens voluminous disputes concerning grace, and shall propound these seven directions to poor graceless souls: and they are plain and practical duties.

1.With-draw thy self from the World: at some times learn to sequester your selves from the cares, affaires, comforts, cumbers, and company here below. Do not think you can hoard up in a croud, Satan loves to fish in troubled waters, but so doth not Christ: the noise of Cains hammers in building Cities, drowns the voice of conscience: A man shal best enjoy himself alone: Solitary recesses are of singular advantage, both for getting and increasing grace: Prov 18:1. Through desire a man having separated himself, seeketh, and intermedleth with all wisdome: in this you may and must be separatists: let me advise you (and O that I could prevail at least thus far) to treat and entertain your selves by your selves: he is a wicked man, and resolves to continue so, that dare not entertain himself with discourses about spiritual subjects and soul-affaires; it were more safe to know the worst, before you feel the worst: let your solitary thoughts be working about things of eternity, however accustome your selves to secret and serious pondering: I read that the father of a prodigal left it as his death-bed charge, [Note 3] unto his only Son to spend a quarter of an hour every day in retired thinking, but left him at liberty to think of what he would, the Son having this liberty to please himself in the subject, sets himself to the performance of his promise; his thoughts one day recal his past pleasures, another contrive his future delights, but at length his thoughts became inquisitive, what might be his Fathers end in proposing this task, he thought his Father was a wise and good man, therefore surely he intended and hoped that he would sometime or other think of Religion; when this leavened his thoughts, they multiplyed abundantly, neither could he contain them in so short a confinement, but was that night sleepless, and afterwards restless, til he became seriously religious.#

By all meanes use sometimes to be alone, Salute thy self; [Note 4] see what thy soul doth wear, Dare to look in thy Chest; for 'tis thine own: And tumble up & down what thou find'st there: Who cannot rest till he good fellowes finde, He breaks up house turns out of doors his mind.

O sirs, you little know what good effects a serious consideration may produce. God propounds it, & men have practised it, as the great expedient to begin and promote repentance: Consider, what you came into the World for, whither you must go if you die this moment, what a state you were born in, what is the need and nature of Regeneration, what is the worth and price of your immortal souls: and through Gods blessing, these thoughts may leave some good impressions.

2.Be at a Point concerning your state be exact, and impartial, in searching your hearts to finde out your state, trifle not in this great work of self-examination, be not afraid to know the worst of thy self: make a curious and critical heart-anatomy, Try whether Jesus Christ be in you, [Note 5] do as the Goldsmith, who brings his Gold to the Ballance? So do you weigh your selves in the ballance of the Sanctuarie; judge not of your state by the common opinion of others concerning you, but by Scripture-Characters, and bring your vertues to the Touchstone: pierce them through, to try whether they be genuine Graces, or moral Endowments: See whether your Treasure be that Gold that's tryed in the fire, i.e. in the fiery Furnace of affliction and persecution. Oh, how many are deceived with imaginarie felicities, and emptie flourishes? Take heed of being put off with gifts, instead of Grace; Conviction, instead of Conversion; outward Reformation, instead of saving Sanctification; which is the damning and undoing of thousands of souls: Why wil you not use as much diligence for your soules, as you'l do for your bodies, or estates? If your Bodie be in a dangerous disease, or your Estate at hazard in an intricate suit, you'l run and ride, and make friends, and pay any money to know, what shal become of them, and to secure them: and are not your soules more worth than a stinking Carcasse, or Dunghil-estate? Sirs, pose your selves with serious questions: Heart, how is it with thee? Art thou renewed? What life of grace is in thee? Are thy graces of the right stamp? Whither art thou going? and get distinct and positive Answers to such questions as these: Let not thy treacherous heart dallie with thee; be not put off with general hopes and groundlesse conjectures: a man is easilie induced to believe what hee would have to be true, but rest not there; try further, make it out, how it comes to be so, detect, and answer everie flaw in thy spiritual estate: if thou canst not do this thy self, make thy case known to some able Minister, or experienced Christian; tell them how things are with thee, beg advice; ask them how it was with their soules, and thou shalt finde much help this way. [Note 6] Yet after all, suspect thine own heart: call in help from Heaven, desire the Lord to search thee, and be willing to be sifted to the bran, searched to the bottom. David is so intent upon it, and so affraid of a mistake, that he useth three emphatical words, in that challenge he makes for his soules disquisition, [Note 7] Ps 26:2. Examine me, O Lord, and prove me, try my reins and my heart: The first word imports a viewing us as from a watch-tower; the second word imports a tempting, or finding out a thing by questions, inquiry by signes, the last word imports such a tryal, as separates the dross from the gold, The dregs from the wine; so the Christian would be tryed, purged, that grace may appear true, sincere, solid: and indeed, it's as much as your souls are worth: Therefore take the most effectual course to clear your state to your selves, and be not put off with any answer, but what will be accepted by God at the great day.#

3.Mourn over thy empty heart: if you finde things not right in your own hearts lament your state, cry out with a loud and bitter cry, as Esau did when the blessing was gone; lament and say woe and alas that ever I was born! that I have lived thus long without God in the World, at first entrance into it a Bankrupt, and ever since a spiritual beggar. Oh what will become of me, if I die in this estate? there's but a step betwixt me and death, and the next breath I breathe may be in everlasting burnings. It is a wonder I am not hurl'd into Hell before this, what shall I do to be saved? Is there any hope of such a wretch as I am? Oh that I could bathe my self in briny-teares of evangelical repentance! Oh how shall I believe in Jesus Christ, that I may receive remission of sins! truth it is, sirs, you'l never be filled til you be sensible of soul-emptiness; spiritual poverty is the Prologue and preparative to true soul-plenty: Gospel-sorrow widens the soul, and so capacitates it for grace: [Note 8] the Oile of grace is poured only into a contrite heart: the Kingdome of God belongs to the poor in spirit, and we know, the best benefits of this Kingdome are internal, as righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost: and these as a rich treasure replenish the penitent soul: for it is the sorrowful soul whom God doth replenish. Jer 31:25. Therefore, you are to endeavour to discover the nature of sin, and danger therein, the wrath of God hanging over your heads for it: if you were pricked in your hearts, with a pinching pain, you would be restless til you had obtained an interest in Jesus Christ, if your souls were weary and heavy laden, you would not be content til you had laid the stress of all upon an infinite Saviour: if the Lord would help graceless sinners these two steps, to see that they are yet graceless, and discern their misery in being so, that were an hopeful gradation towards conversion: did you see your state, you could not but bewaile it, and make out for a change: and did you see the precious nature of the soul, and that grace that is to fill it, you would not be another day without it.#

4.Empty thy heart of all corruption; oh cleanse that filthy sink of all sin, purge your selves from all filthiness both of flesh and spirit: shake hands with that sin that forbids the banes of marriage betwixt Jesus Christ, and thy soul: lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset you, [Note 9] and then lift up your eies and heart to Jesus Christ: Cleanse your hands yee sinners, purifie your hearts yee double-minded: [Note 10] empty this dirty house of thy heart, that the King of Glory may enter in; throw out the Devils house-hold stuff, and make room for a new Inhabitant: the Vessel must be emptied, or it can never be filled with saving good: [Note 11] for that which is within, hinders any thing else entring: and alas the heart is ful of vain conceits, and worldly thoughts, and filthy lusts, which keep off good motions, keep out good dispositions. Now if a Man purge himself from these, he shall be a Vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the Masters use, and prepared unto every good work. 2 Tim 2:21. Let me entreat you for the Lords sake, and for your own souls sake, to search and sweep every dusty corner of your filthy hearts. Let not this train of graces and treasure of truths be alwaies waiting your leisure, whiles you are wallowing in the puddle of sin, and swallowing down the Devils sweet, but dangerous, Pils of soul-murdering temptations; Oh be willing to make this blessed exchange, to part with thy base lusts for a precious Christ, to forgoe soul-damning corruptions for soul-perfuming dispositions: if you cannot put off the whole bodie of sin, yet you are to cut off the members thereof, you ought indeed to stub up sin by the roots, but you may lop off its branches: you may abate sin in part, by contrarie actings, knowledge doth remove ignorance, as light doth darkness, grief abates pleasure, and fear boldness in sinning, patience daunts passion, and fasting tames unrulie lusts, these you may do, and these may be good preparatives to this treasure: [Note 12] For as one saith, when the strength of a Feaver is abated by physical meanes, a Man is disposed towards health; and plowed ground is (at least) materiallie prepared for seed; though God is not bound then to sow the seeds of saving grace, yet thou hast encouragement, that thy labour shal not be in vain; use these meanes, and trie the issue, endeavour to cast off these works of darkness, [Note 13] and to put on the armour of light, yea labour to put off the old Man, and to put on the new, at least do what you can to wash your hearts from filthiness, that your vain thoughts may not lodge within you, Jer 4:14. That you may have a saving treasure of holy meditations.#

5.Be gleaning in Gods Field, be filling your sacks in the divine granary of Ordinances; [Note 14] The way for Ruth to be well laden was to glean in Boaz's Field, among the Sheaves near the Reapers: the Patriarchs must have recourse to Josephs Store-houses for provision; and where may we expect supply, but in Gospel-Ordinances? those [canales gratiae] Channe's of grace; the Posts of wisdome, the Garden where such precious Spices grow, the Orchard where the soul may be loaden with the fruits of righteousness, Ordinances are the Lords Camp, where this Heavenly Manna falls; they are the green pastures, [Note 15] where we may fill and feasts our soules, the Galleries where the King of Heaven takes his walks, and here the Christlesse soul may meet with him: this is like Solomons House of the forrest of Lebanon, builded for an Armorie, where the naked soul may be furnished with Shields and Spears; offensive and defensive weapons to fortifie the soul against the fiercest on-sets of the great Abaddon: If your soules be sick of love, [Note 16] here you may finde Flaggons of precious liquor to revive your fainting spirits, dispensed by the Lords Stewards: [Note 17] If you sit under this Apple-tree, you shall be under its shadow with great delight, and the fruit thereof will be sweet to your taste: [Note 18] O then seek Christ in the broad-wayes of publick Ordinances, and goe your waies forth by these footsteps of the flock. Search this Pearl in the field of Gospel-dispensations, and your soules shal be trulie enriched thereby: 'tis by these Ordinances, through which, as by golden Pipes, [Note 19] that precious oyl is conveyed to us from that fruitful Olive, Jesus Christ. O do not leave off Ordinances, as some conceited Professors that boast they are above them: for if you set the Cistern above the Cock, it wil never be full; and therefore you must have a reverent esteem of the Lords appointments: prepare your selves, and frequent soul-filling Ordinances: live still within the sound of Aarons Bells, and beg of God that Aarons Rod may bring forth the buds of grace in your immortal soules: [Note 20] The Rod of Aaron (as one wel observes) may signifie the Ministrie [Effectivè] as to the effects it produceth, by the blessing of God bringing forth buds, blossomes, and ripe Nuts all at once, i. e. saith he, precious buds of grace, blossomes of heavenly joy, and holy fruits of righteousnesse, and new Obedience: Onely let me intreat you to wait upon an heart-searching Ministrie, that the secrets of your heart may be manifest, and conscience may be pricked; Be not affraid of a Boanerges, but gladlie welcome the sharp rebukes of your Soules-friends, it may be fittest for your sleepie or seared Consciences. 'Tis said of the Almond-tree (of which Aarons Rod was) that the Rind thereof is bitter, [Note 21] but the Kernel is very delicious, and the oyle prest out of it very Physical, and of much vertue; just such are the chastising words of a round-dealing Ministrie, bitter at present, but profitable afterwards: and observe it, they are ordinarilie the soundest Christians that are trained under the most plain and piercing preaching; therefore I entreat you, lay your selves directlie under the Hammer of the Word, to be framed by the Lord according to his will:#

6.Studie and improve Free grace; O let your thoughts dwel much upon Gods infinite condescention and unlimited invitation of poor sinners: See what you suck out of Isa 55:1. and John 7:37. and Rev 22:17. Whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely; there's no bar to your admission, but what your selves make: Christ Jesus includes you in Gospel-tenders, Oh do not exclude your selves: the Great Shepheard calleth his sheep by name, John 10:3. How is that, but by speaking expreslie to their Case? as if he should strike the troubled heart upon the shoulder, and say, here's comfort for thee; what if thy name be not there, yet the proposition is universal, he that believeth, shall be saved: thousands of poor sinners have ventured their soules upon such a word, and never any miscarried that cast themselves into the armes of Christ: you have no reason to suspect acceptance, if you come to him, you have all the grounds of incouragement imaginable. A Physitian offereth cure to all that will come, it were madnesse to stand off, and say, I know not whether he intendeth it for me or no: if men were readie to perish in deep waters, and a Boat should be offered to carrie them to land, that would come into it, it were an absurd thing to dispute, whether it be for us? If a pardon come from the King for a companie of condemned prisoners, and they shall all have benefit by it, if they will but accept of it, what mad man would refuse it and question, whether the Prince intend him particularlie. Since his name is included in the general grant; Surelie men would not so fondlie cast away themselves in temporals: and who would be such a fool in the everlasting concernments of his precious soul? The way here is not to Dispute, but Believe: Is not Jesus Christ out souls Physitian? and are not we sick? Is not the Gospel-design of Grace, a plank after ship-wrack? and are not we drowning? Are not we condemned Malefactors at the Bar of Gods Justice? and doth not God graciouslie tender to us the Redemption so dearlie purchased by our precious Saviour? and why then should wee forsake our own mercies? why will you be cruel to your own soules? If it were in temporals, you would put out the hand and be very readie for receiving. [Note 22] If you sit at a Feast, and there stand a dish upon the Table that you affect, though all the companie be free to make use of it, yet you say, here's a dish for me, and you think it good manners to feed heartilie upon it, without scruples and disputes of being welcome, since you were freelie invited by your noble Friend; Our Lord Jesus hath made a Feast of fat things, and hath bidden his Guests: he invites you to eat and drink abundantlie: Oh do not you make Apologies for your absence from this Gospel feast; when he invites, do not you question whether he means as he speaks, but fall to, and make a long arme, and take your share of this Provision; I can assure you, he hath not an evil eye, he doth not grudge you this heavenly Manna; Nay, rather than your soules shall famish, he freely gives you his flesh and blood to nourish your poor immortal soules: Oh you that have torn his flesh with the teeth of cruel persecution, of himself and his members! You that have trampled upon his blood with the feet of an odious and abominable conversation! You he calls to eat his flesh and drink his blood by faith in him, and improvement of him, that your soules may live; You that have despised riches of grace, Treasures of grace are opened for you: You that have fought against Jesus Christ all your daies with all your might, he invites you to be his Souldiers, and he will lovinglie entertain you, as if you had never been in rebellion against the King of Kings: will not this melt and move you to yield your selves unto your dear and loving Lord? I beseech you, take these things into your serious thoughts, and accept of Jesus Christ: onelie presume not by dreaming of application of Christ without separation from sin: take a whole Christ to sanctifie thy heart as well as justifie thy person, to purifie conscience as well as pacifie wrath: Take Christ aright, mistake him not, least you be wofullie mistaken to your eternal undoing: You need a whole Christ, and a broken heart will not be content with a divided Saviour; 'tis the whorish heart that will divide, a sincere soul must have all, he needs grace as well as peace: indeed there's nothing of Christ uselesse, every part of this Lamb of God is of absolute necessitie to the indigent soul: and true faith takes him in all his mediatorie Latitude: 'tis as dangerous to divide Christ believed on, as the heart believing: therefore stir up your selves to a due consideration of free Grace, and application of it in the right Gospel-way of Believing.#

7.Be humble Petitioners at the Throne of Grace; Beg hard at the Gates of Mercy for a large dole of Heavenlie Riches: Ask, if that will not do, Seek; if seeking avail not, Knock, and you shall be sure to prevail: the choicest riches of Heaven may be had for asking, and if they be not worth that, they are worth nothing; God loves importunate Beggars: there's libertie of petitioning in the Court of Heaven; 'tis no bad manners there to heap suit upon suit: the oftner you come, the welcomer you are: [Note 23] He will give the Holy Spirit to them that aske it, and that's a good thing in Gods account, and should be in ours; for it enricheth the Soul with an abundant Treasure. O beg the Spirit of God, open your mouths wide and he will fill them: We should think our selves made for ever, if we might but have what we can ask: But the truth is, we cannot ask so much as God is able and willing to give us, Eph 3:19,#

20.Therefore Sirs, stir up your hearts to desire Grace, open these windows of your Soules: lift up your selves to God upon these wings of Desires, and fetch a Treasure from Heaven into your hearts: [Note 24] Strong desires are real Praiers, and shall prevail, for they not onlie capacitate the soul for grace, but lay it directlie under the Promise, Matt 5:6. Desire is the Souls pullies, that wind it up to Heaven, and 'tis the Souls stomach, that receives Heaven into the Christian: therefore pray hard; Do not you see and hear the pathetical cries of poor Beggars, backed with Rhetorical arguments of soares, and nakedness, at your doors, and in the Road? Goe you and do likewise, fill the eares of God with mightie cries, take no denial, give God no rest, till you have your share in spiritual Blessings: tell God you will not be put off with the transient good things of this wicked world: tell him he hath better things than these to bestow upon Children: Crowns & golden Mines are but crumbs cast to Dogs; tell him thou comest to him for a Childes portion: and if he will but give thee a treasure of grace in thy heart, and reserve a treasure of glorie for thee in Heaven, thou wilt refer matters of the world to him, and he shall do for those things as he sees good; whether he give thee lesse or more of the Mammon of unrighteousnesse, any thing or nothing: tell the Lord he hath betrusted these talents of grace with unworthie Creatures and great Sinners, and if thou be worse than any that ever yet partak't thereof, yet tell him, he doth not sell these precious Commodities to men deserving, but give them to craving sinners, and thou art one, that needs as much as any: tell him thou never yet heardest that he refused to give them to any that sought them for Christs sake, with a broken heart above wordlie treasures: tell him, that himself hath promised, his Son hath purchased, his Spirit will freely convey these Gospel-riches into thy heart, and if he will but speak the word, the thing shall be quickly done. Tell the Lord, yet once again, what a Monument he will thereby raise to his own glorie, if he will fill thy soul with this Treasure, he will thereby make known the riches of his glorie on a poor Vessel of Mercy: [Note 25] And whereas now thou art an useless Vessel, wherin the Lord can have no pleasure, by whom he can have no profit or honour; Yet if he wil be pleased to own and crown thy soul with saving grace, he may then take delight in thee, and rest in his love towards thee: and when he hath blessed thee with spiritual blessings in Heavenly things—Then thou wilt be to the praise of the glorie of his grace. Eph 1:3.6. Thus come, thus pour out your hearts like water before the Lord, lie day and night at the Throne of Grace, it's worth all this pains in seeking; wil not you do as much as Esau for this blessing? he took pains to hunt for Venison, [Note 26] that Isaac's soul might bless him, and missing of it, he lift up his voice, and cried with a great and exceeding bitter crie, redoubling his request with an affectionate Eccho. Bless me, even me also, O my Father: the words are very remarkable, and have as notable an Emphasis, as almost is to be found in Scripture, and will you be worse than prophane Esau? O sirs, if you knew your souls want, and the worth of divine things, your prayers would have an other accent, and be put up with more fervencie than usuallie they are: and you might have hopes to speed: so saith the wise Man, if thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for understanding. If thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hidden treasures, then shalt thou understand the fear of the Lord, & finde the knowledge of God: Prov 2:3, 4, 5.#

Before I break off this subject, let me press a little upon you the wholsome councel of our dear Saviour, Rev 3:18. I councel thee to buy of me, Gold tried in the Fire, that thou maist be rich, &c. Consider

1.What is your estate naturallie, and without Christ, you may imagine great things, but God knows there is no such matter, [Note 27] as he saith to this self-conceited Church of Laodicea, Vers. 17 Thou saist I am rich—and know'st not that thou art wretched, miserable, poor, blinde, naked: he heapes up many words to aggravate their beggarlie state: the graceless soul is#

1.wretched, i.e. pressed with sickness, miserie and calamitie, over-whelmed with reproach, over-thrown in conflicts, cannot stir hand or foot for God, being alwaies over-born by his Master, Satan:#

2.[Note 28] He is miserable, i.e. though he stand in absolute need of divine help and mercie, yet he is unworthie and destitute of it; God wil have no mercie on this woful object, [Note 29] so that the forlorne soul may be called Lo-ruhamah.#

3.The sinner is poor, i.e. in extream necessitie, hath not a bit or morsel of brown Bread, but begs from door to door, these poor souls are readie to famish and pine, and shall have no relief.#

4.Blinde, this is a sad aggravation, when a Man must wander for bread to relieve his soul, yet knows not whither to go, [Note 30] nay knows not that he needs to go, is miserable, and knows it not; Yea further he is,#

5.Naked, exposed to the injuries of weather, and lashes of Men; thus is the poor soul destitute of the wedding Garment. Christs righteousness having only a naked skin to fortifie against the wrath of God, the curse of the Law, and tormentings of conscience, and what can this availe the wretched miscreant? Let a man be the richest Potentate under Heaven, yet if he be graceless, he is thus wretchedlie poor; no tongue can express the miserie of an unregenerate Person; There are seven words in Hebrew that signifie poor, and they are all applicable to a poor Creature without Christ and grace. [Note 31]#

1.He is straitened in the abundance of outward sufficiencie, with a griping conscience; and greedie grasping after shadows.#

2.[Note 32] His goods are diminished, and he is grown a bank-rupt in Adam, vain inventions have wasted a fair estate, and dailie weaken the reliques of natural light. [Note 33]#

3.He is oppressed with intollerable labour, grinding in the Devils Mil, toiling in worse than Egyptian thraldome, without any relief for his famishing soul. [Note 34]#

4.He is of a dejected minde, like the Serpent, going with his bellie to the dust, a degenerate Plant, the worst part of the Creation, the basest of Creatures, the taile, and not the head. [Note 35]#

5.Besides all this he is afflicted spirituallie with suits, hatred, exile, imprisonment, God himself commenceth suit against him, hates him, banisheth him from his presence, delivers him over into Satans hands, by whom he is led Captive, at his pleasure.#

6.[Note 36] He is alwaies needie, desires all things, but hath nothing, cannot be content, snatching on the right and left hand, yet is never satisfied, boundless in motion towards a wrong object, that increaseth his thirst.#

7.[Note 37] He is emptie both of vertues, which are the riches of the minde, for though he may have some moral accomplishments, yet they are but [Splendida peccata] more splendid and shining sins, without grace; and also he is destitute of the World, for having a curse and not Gods blessing therewith, it doth him no good; nay it is his bane, being both a snare, and a poison, and aggravating sin, and increasing his torment, having a sadder account to make another day: this and much worse is the condition of a graceless heart, out of which it is councelled! Oh who would tarrie one hour in such a wretched state, the Lord be merciful to you, and pluck you out of the Sodom of unregeneracie, lest you perish eternallie.#

2.Consider the state into which you are councelled, for this end observe,#

1.[Note 38] Who is your Councellour, Jesus Christ, who indeed is the onlie Councellour, the wisdome of the Father, who best understands the Law of heaven, and what wil stand you in stead, in the Court of God; he that might command you into Hel, doth councel you for Heaven; he that died for you, opens his heart to you; he that wil speak to the Father for you, intreats you to make use of him as your onlie Advocate.#

2.Consider what and who you are and have been, that are thus councelled, enemies to his grace, in whom he might glorifie his justice, and cast you head-long into the Pit, and there's an end of you, persons that have been a provocation all your daies, that have resisted, quenched, grieved, vexed his holie spirit, trampled Christ under foot, served Satan and your selves; behold he pours out his words unto you, [Note 39] yea he offers to pour his spirit into you: it is the voice of an infinite God, to a mortal sinful Man, Vnto you, O men, I call, and my voice is to the Sons of Men. Prov 8:4. And#

3.Consider, what he councels to, 'tis to a rich and precious purchase: O yee great purchasers, here's a bargain for you, not of a piece of Land, but the Kingdome, not an Earthlie but an Heavenlie Kingdome, not a fair House to live in here, but eternal mansions in the Heavens: come, strike up the bargain, [Note 40] bid freely, but what must you give? money, or moneys worth? no, worldly treasures are dross here, money beares no mastery, the price is fallen to just nothing, shal I say nothing? you are to give away your sins, and give God your selves, yet that's no price, because it beares no proportion to such receits: grace and glory are Gods gift, yet God puts this honour upon such as honour him by believing, as though they buy what they enjoy: Let every soul make this cheap purchase: But if it be so cheap, is it not of little worth? wil it not prove accordingly? what is the purchase, and what is it good for? That brings in the four things, viz. the things purchased are absolutely necessary & beneficial.#

1.Gold.#

2.Rayment.#

3.Eve salve.#

4.Every one accomplisheth a notable end, to make rich, cloath and recover sight: we cannot be without any of these: I cannot enlarge, take a touch:#

1.This gold tryed in the fire is Scripture-truths, [Note 41] and we must by all means buy truth, [Note 42] by no means sell it, and the words of God are as silver tryed in a furnace of Earth, [Note 43] purified seven times, therefore David loved the Word above fine gold; I told you we must make a treasure of this refined Gold of Scripture-truths, [Note 44] but I rather understand this of the tryed gold of precious graces, especially faith, which being tried in the Furnace of affliction is much more precious than gold that perisheth: [Note 45] this indeed makes the soul truly rich, as money answers all things, so this wil bring us through all conditions, and this is to be had of Christ, therefore buy or beg it of him, and believe in him for obtaining more of the Riches of grace.#

2.White raiment is the Robes of Christs Righteousnesse, the garments of our elder Brother, fine Linnen clean and white, for whitenesse is a token of purity, and 'tis an allusion to the Romane Candidates, that seeking Dignity or Magistracy, come forth conspicuously into the Assembly, thereby signifying that integrity which became those honourable Offices: So the Saints must have the upper garments of imputed Righteousnesse, and closer rayment of inherent Holinesse, of both which 'tis said, Rev 16:15—Blessed is he that watcheth and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame, i. e. the filth and guilt of sin:#

3.Eye-salve, an Ointment that purgeth away the dregs and dimness of the Eyes, this grace banisheth the dark mists from the soul, and makes it see clearly the state of our hearts, the evil of sin, and excellencie of the things of God: a right understanding of divine Mysteries is a mercy worth praying for and prizing: This is the only learning, book-learning and brain-knowledge are not worth naming in comparison of this, [Note 46] for this annionting will teach you of all things:#

Well, Sirs, I am loath to leave this Subject til I have prevailed with you, to make it your main businesse to look after this divine Treasure. O that Jesus Christ were formed in your hearts, and the life of grace were begun in your soules, if that be wrought you'l be fit for all conditions, without it, you'l be fit for nothing, and nothing can suit you, you wil make no shift in a hard time, and you know not how to improve happy times, a day of affliction will swallow you up, temptation wil overthrow you, mercies wil encrease your guilt, judgments drive you to despair; you cannot buckle to the easiest Duties, nor apply the sweetest Promises, and how wil you come off in the great day of Accounts? whether wil you go for help, and where will you leave your glorie?