Aggravation of sin and sinning against knowledge. Mercy. Delivered in several sermons upon divers…Aggravation of sinne and sinning against knowledge. Mercie. Delivered in severall sermons upon divers…

Think how grievous this is; for if it is made an excuse for many a man in sinning, that it answers but his education; that he never knew or saw better, as you say of many Papists; then must it needs on the contrary, be an aggravation of sinfulness. And as it was Timothy's commendation, that he knew the Scriptures from a child, so it will be thy condemnation, that thou knewest better from a child, and yet rebellest against thy light.

Think how grievous this is; for if it is made an excuse for many a man in sinning, that it answers but his education; that he never knew or saw better, as you say of many Papists; then must it needs on the contrary, be an aggravation of sinfulnesse. And as it was Timothies commendation, that hee knew the Scriptures from a child, so it will be thy condemnation, that thou knewest better from a child, and yet rebellest against thy light.

Thirdly, the more real and experimental the light is,¹ men sin against, still the more sin; as when they have learnt it from examples of godly men, whom they have lived amongst, or the observations of Gods dealings with themselves or others, and not only from the word notionally. To sin against such light, this adds a further degree; not only to sin against the bare light of nature, but also further, when nature hath besides lighted her torch at the Scripture, and then when beyond all this, the real examples and observations made of Gods dealings with a mans self and others, shall confirm all this, this makes a mans sinfulness much more grievous; for as exempla efficacius docent quàm praecepta, so the knowledge got by experiments of mercies or judgements, is of ⟨p. 83⟩more force and evidence. Knowledge learnt by experience, is the most efficacious. Therefore Christ himself, who knew all things already, yet learnt (in the school of experience) by what he suffered. A little of some knowledge distilled out of a mans own observation, is most precious, every drop of it; therefore the Apostle urgeth it on Timothy,