A09977:294
Life eternalLife eternall
Life eternal or, A treatise of the knowledge of the divine essence and attributes Delivered in XVIII. sermons. By the late faithful and worthy minister of Jesus Christ, John Preston, D. in Divinity, chaplain in ordinary to his Majesty, master of Emmanuel College in Cambridge, and sometimes preacher of Lincolns Inn.Life eternall or, A treatise of the knowledge of the divine essence and attributes Delivered in XVIII. sermons. By the late faithfull and worthy minister of Iesus Christ, Iohn Preston, D. in Divinity, chaplaine in ordinary to his Majestie, master of Emmanuel Colledge in Cambridge, and sometimes preacher of Lincolns Inne.
London: printed by Richard, 1631
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
Again, as it is Idolatry, so it is a vain thing to do it; for we are not able to do it;1 Psal. 37.5.2 He will bring it to pass; there the Lord takes it as peculiar to him only; therefore in Isai. 26.12. (you may compare them both together) it is said there,3 Lord thou wilt ordain peace for us, for thou also hast wrought all our works in us. The scope of this place is this: Other men (saith he) they forget God, they carry themselves aloft, but it is he that will ordain us peace, though none else shall put his hand to it; it is he that doth all our works for us, not our especial works only, but all; it is ⟨p. 114⟩not any man, or any creature that doth them, it is he that works all our works for us. And if we did believe this, we should look upon him with another eye, and serve him after another manner; we should be more dependent on him, we should be more fervent in prayer; & not when we would do any thing, turn every stone, and to knock at every creatures door, to see what help they could give us; but our eye would be towards him; for it is in vain to run to them; no creature can do it, there is no enterprise but hath many wheels, and the stopping of one wheel hinders the whole enterprise; and it is he, that turns all those wheels, commands all, must bring it to pass, or else the least thing will hinder our greatest enterprises; therefore you see that the fairest blossoms of our endeavours do often wither, and the unprobablest things do come to pass. See it in David, to give you an example of it; when he would trust God, he had a promise of the Kingdom, but not by himself; his own power should not do it; and yet the wheels of Gods providence did bring it to pass. So when he staid his hand from killing Nabal, did not the Lord bring it to pass in a better manner than he could have done? And when he had the Kingdom, Abner was his great enemy, but yet David did nothing, but that which was right; and you see how God did bring it to pass, he took away his life without any hand of his. So Ishbosheth was his enemy, yet when David sate still, and did nothing, his head was brought to him;