A12167:834
Bowels Opened
Bowels opened, or, A discovery of the near and deer love, union and communion betwixt Christ and the Church, and consequently betwixt Him and every believing soul Delivered in divers sermons on the fourth fifth and sixth chapters of the Canticles. By that reverend and faithful minister of the Word, Doctor Sibs, late preacher unto the honourable society of Gray's Inn, and Master of Katharine Hall in Cambridge. Being in part finished by his own pen in his life time, and the rest of them perused and corrected by those whom he entrusted with the publishing of his works.Bovvels opened, or, A discovery of the neere and deere love, union and communion betwixt Christ and the Church, and consequently betwixt Him and every beleeving soule Delivered in divers sermons on the fourth fifth and sixt chapters of the Canticles. By that reverend and faithfull minister of the Word, Doctor Sibs, late preacher unto the honourable societie of Grayes Inne, and Master of Katharine Hall in Cambridge. Being in part finished by his owne pen in his life time, and the rest of them perused and corrected by those whom he intrusted with the publishing of his works.
London: printed by George for George Edwards, 1639
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,1 Let us make this Use of it, against Satan in the time of temptation, 2doth Christ think us fair for the good we have, doth he not altogether value us by our ill• and shall we believe Satan, who joins with the distempers of melancholy, or weakness we are in, which he useth as a weapon against the soul, to make us think otherwise, Satan is not only a ••ourtherer, but a liar from the beginning. We must not believe an enemy, and a liar withal. But consider how Christ and the Church judgeth, that have better discerning. And let us beware we be not sathans to our selves: For if there were no Devil, yet in the time of temptation and desertion we are subject to discouragement, to give false witness against our selves, we are apt to look on the dark side of the Cloud.3 The Cloud that went before the Israelites had a double aspect, one dark, the other light;4 In temptation we look on the ⟨p. 326⟩dark side of the soul, and are witty in pleading against our selves. Oh but consider what Christ judgeth of us, O thou fairest among women, and what those about us that are learned, who can read our evidences better then we our selves, do judge of us, let us trust the judgement of others in time of temptation more then our own.
Againe,1 Let us make this Use of it, against Sathan in the time of temptation, 2doth Christ thinke us faire for the good we have, doth he not altogether valew us by our ill• and shall we beleeve Sathan, who joynes with the distempers of melancholly, or weakenesse wee are in, which he useth as a weapon against the soule, to make us thinke otherwise, Sathan is not onely a ourtherer, but a lyr from the beginning. We must not beleeve an enemy, and a lyer withall. But consider how Christ and the Church judgeth, that have better discerning. And let us beware wee be not sathans to our selves: For if there were no Divell, yet in the time of temptation and desertion we are subject to discouragement, to give false witnesse against our selves, we are apt to looke on the darkeside of the Cloud.