A30243:466
Spiritual refining
Spiritual refining: or A treatise of grace and assurance Wherein are handled, the doctrine of assurance. The use of signs in self-examination. How true graces may be distinguished from counterfeit. Several true signs of grace, and many false ones. The nature of grace under divers Scripture notions or titles, as regeneration, the new-creature, the heart of flesh, vocation, sanctification, &c. Many chief questions (occasionally) controverted between the orthodox and the Arminians. As also many cases of conscience. Tending to comfort and confirm saints. Undeceive and convert sinners. Being CXX sermons preached and now published by Anthony Burgess sometime fellow of Emanuel College in Cambridge, and now pastor of the church of Sutton-Coldfield in Warwickshire.Spiritual refining: or A treatise of grace and assurance Wherein are handled, the doctrine of assurance. The use of signs in self-examination. How true graces may be distinguished from counterfeit. Several true signs of grace, and many false ones. The nature of grace under divers Scripture notions or titles, as regeneration, the new-creature, the heart of flesh, vocation, sanctification, &c. Many chief questions (occasionally) controverted between the orthodox and the Arminians. As also many cases of conscience. Tending to comfort and confirm saints. Undeceive and convert sinners. Being CXX sermons preached and now published by Anthony Burgess sometime fellow of Emanuel Colledge in Cambridge, and now pastor of the church of Sutton-Coldfield in Warwickshire.
London: printed by A. Miller for Thomas Underhill, 1652
Title page typeset from the transcription.
A TREATISE OF GRACE and ASSURANCE; Being CXX. SERMONS. › Section 2 › Sermon 18
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.
3. It implieth we love all godly men, for so that phrase in the Abstract, Love the 1Brotherhood, supposeth, that is, Take every godly man, rich as well as poor, despised as well as honoured, low and base as well as high and esteemed, thou dost love all of them. It may be thy love is restrained to love godly men only, that are of thy constitution, condition or opinion; but then there are others upon whom thou castest no favourable aspect at all. The Apostle James doth much condemn that practice of differencing the poor godly from the rich, Jam. 2. 1, 2. where the Apostle doth not absolutely prohibit a civil differencing of men in ⟨p. 99⟩place from others, but when it is done with an humane respect, immoderately regarding wealth more then godliness, and when it's done to the contempt and disgrace, or discouragement of the godly poor; hence he bids them consider that though they be poor, yet God hath chosen them rich in faith: Now this carnal respect of persons the Apostle makes a great sin, both because hereby he saith, They become judges of evil thoughts, that is, these thoughts of theirs in judging thus are wicked and sinful, and partly because hereby the name of God is blasphemed; hence vers. 1. he calls Christ, The Lord of glory, implying, that those things which are godly and gracious should be glorious to us. So then as hatred of sin is totius speciei, we hate every kind of sin; so is love of the Brethren, of all Brethren, making no difference in this respect. Indeed there is a love of familiarity which we may show more to one godly man then another; thus Christ loved John more then the other Disciples; but we speak of a gracious love; and in this we ought not to attend to humane respects but evangelical merely; Therefore the Apostle calls it [Greek or Hebrew], that is, when we in judging look to something else then the merits of the person, or the cause. This we are all apt and very prone unto; See we therefore that in Gospel-love we attend only to Gospel considerations.
3. It implieth we love all godly men, for so that phrase in the Abstract, Love the 1Brotherhood, supposeth, that is, Take every godly man, rich as well as poor, despised as well as honoured, low and base as well as high and esteemed, thou dost love all of them. It may be thy love is restrained to love godly men onely, that are of thy constitution, condition or opinion; but then there are others upon whom thou castest no favourable aspect at all. The Apostle James doth much condemn that practice of differencing the poor godly from the rich,