A20762:2453
A guide to godliness or a Treatise of a Christian life showing the dutiesA guide to godlynesse or a Treatise of a Christian life shewing the duties
A guide to godliness or a Treatise of a Christian life showing the duties wherein it consisteth, the helps enabling & the reasons persuading unto it the impediments hindering the practise of it, and the best means to remove them whereunto are added divers prayers and a treatise of carnal security by John Douname Bachelor in Divinity and minister of Gods Word.A guide to godlynesse or a Treatise of a Christian life shewing the duties wherein it consisteth, the helpes inabling & the reasons parswading vnto it ye impediments hindering ye practise of it, and the best meanes to remoue them whereunto are added diuers prayers and a treatise of carnall securitie by Iohn Douname Batcheler in Diuinitie and minister of Gods Word.
London: printed by Felix Kingstone and William Stansby for Ed, 1622
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.
Can two 1walk together, and not be agreed? And as possible it is to reconcile light and darkness, truth and falsehood, good and evil, as the faithful and infidels, godly Christians and profane worldlings, both retaining their own properties and dispositions. For an unjust man is an abomination to the 2just, and he that is upright in his way, is an abomination to the wicked. Neither let any so much presume upon their own strength, as to imagine that they can retain their sincerity, though they keep wicked company, and rather convert them to good, then be perverted by them unto evil, seeing this is a matter of great difficulty. To be good (saith one) among the 3good, hath in it health and safety; among the wicked to be so, is also commendable and praise-worthy; in that, happiness is joined with much security; in this, much virtue with difficulty. For as he who is running down the hill, can sooner pull with him one that is ascending, then he who is going up, can cause him to ascend that is running down: so he who holdeth an headlong course in wickedness, can more easily carry with him one that is ascending the hill of virtue, being a motion contrary to natural disposition, then he can cause him to ascend with him. For in common experience we see, that the worser state prevaileth more, in altering the better to its condition, then the better to make the worse like it self. The infected are not so soon cured by the sound, as they tainted with their contagion; Rotten Apples lying with the sound, are not restored to soundness; but the sound are corrupted with their rottenness. Dead carcasses united to living bodies, are not thereby revived, unless it be by miracle, as we see in Elisha and Paul; but the living, if they continue any time united to the 4dead, partake with them in their mortality and corruption. And thus it is also in our spiritual state, wherein the worser more prevaileth to corrupt the better, then the better to reform the worse. For they being wholly flesh, are more earnest and diligent in the devils service, to draw others unto his Kingdom, then true Christians can be in the cause of God, seeing they are but in part regenerate, and the flesh opposeth the Spirit in all good actions, which either respect themselves or their neighbours.