Go learn, and take heed of whom you learn. If you have not an ille indicavit, a direction from him, you will still be to seek of your duty. As we cannot see the Sun but by its own light, so we cannot know God, or his worship, but by divine revelation. Look how far he is pleased to stoop unto us, so far we are also to mount unto him. Moses was to do all things according to the pattern in the Mount, Act. 7. 44. Heb. 8. 5. And the Apostles Commission in the Gospel is the same; teaching them to observe all things what soever I commanded you, Mat. 28. 20. It must first seem good to the Holy Ghost, and then to them, Act. 15. 29. They must declare nothing to the Church but what they have received. They from us, and we from them, 1 Cor. 11. 20. 2 Tim. 2. 2. We must not serve, ex arbitrio, but ex imperio, as Tertull. speaks, [Greek or Hebrew], saith St. Basil, The Scripture doth not comply with us, but we must submit to that. The ruler is not to be leaded to the stone, but the stone to be squared by the ruler; our straining and wrying of Gods word to our own humours, is a sin which hath damnation attending it, 2 Pet. 3. 16. and we find God finding great fault with such service obtruded upon him as hath not entered into his heart, Jer. 7. 32. For as at the omission of what he commands we despise his will, so in ⟨p. 17⟩obtruding what he commands not, we control his Wisdom; in the one we show our selves careless to obey him; in the other we show ourselves presumptuous to counsel him. We are the servants of it, and the servant, as the Philosopher saith, hath no motion but from the guidance of the principal cause. Namque coquus domini debet habere gulam, The cook must dress his meat to his Masters palate, not to his own. That Spartan which added one string more to his instrument in the war than was publicly allowed him, though he mended his music, yet he marred his obedience, and he was punished for it. And therefore in all our conversation, especially religious, and toward God, it is most wisdom, and safest to keep toward our standard, and public rule.
Go learn, and take heed of whom you learn. If you have not an ille indicavit, a direction from him, you will still be to seek of your duty. As we cannot see the Sun but by its own light, so we cannot know God, or his worship, but by divine revelation. Look how far he is pleased to stoop unto us, so far we are also to mount unto him. Moses was to do all things according to the pattern in the Mount, Act. 7. 44. Heb. 8. 5. And the Apostles Commission in the Gospel is the same; teaching them to observe all things what soever I commanded you, Mat. 28. 20. It must first seem good to the Holy Ghost, and then to them, Act. 15. 29. They must declare nothing to the Church but what they have received. They from us, and we from them, 1 Cor. 11. 20. 2 Tim. 2. 2. We must not serve, ex arbitrio, but ex imperio, as Tertull. speaks, 〈non-Latin alphabet〉, saith St. Basil, The Scripture doth not comply with us, but we must submit to that. The ruler is not to be leaded to the stone, but the stone to be squared by the ruler; our straining and wrying of Gods word to our own humours, is a sin which hath damnation attending it, 2 Pet. 3. 16. and we find God finding great fault with such service obtruded upon him as hath not entred into his heart, Ier. 7. 32. For as at the omission of what he commands we despise his will, so in ⟨p. 17⟩obtruding what he commands not, we controll his Wisdome; in the one we shew our selves careless to obey him; in the other we shew ourselves presumptuous to counsel him. We are the servants of it, and the servant, as the Philosopher saith, hath no motion but from the guidance of the principal cause. Namque coquus domini debet habere gulam, The cook must dress his meat to his Masters palate, not to his own. That Spartan which added one string more to his instrument in the war than was publickly allowed him, though he mended his musick, yet he marred his obedience, and he was punished for it. And therefore in all our conversation, especially religious, and toward God, it is most wisdome, and safest to keep toward our standard, and publick rule.
