The first day of the Week.

1. THe eare receiveth the word, as the mouth eateth meate: The bread which the mouth eateth is no bread, nor the life which bread sustaineth is no life, in respect of the bread of an immortall life: therefore the holy spirit calleth mortall man to eat of the true food for to live, which is done by hearing to obey the word; for thus their soule shall live, &c. Isai. 55.〈◊〉.&c.

And thus we eat the bread of God which is come down from Heaven, and thus we are com∣municants in the body and blood of Christ for life, when we hear, and do the word of God, and be made obedient in the fellowship of his suffer∣ings, John 6.27.33.35. &c. this hearing is the same with believing, as John 6.47. &c. and this is the immortall eating; for not every one that heareth and understandeth the word, eateth or believeth to life; but he only that so tasteth the word with his eare, as that he obey and delight in it from Page  43his heart to do the work thereof, in spirit and truth, and knowledge.

2. From the presence of Gods being with us, we have faith as Heb. 11.6. with Reu. 1.8. For as we believe his presence to be such in his visitati∣on, that in him we live, move, and have our beings so likewise in his inspiration; whereby we are instructed to avoide all wayes of errour & heresie, and are guided into all truth: so also by his being with us in spirituall presence, we are kept by his power from all evill of this world, and are like∣wise rewarded with the blessing of his presence, because we wait on him, to seeke him diligently, and to serve him with all our heart in love.

This his presence requireth faith in his guidance, protection, and preservation, as in the mind, so in the body, that no evill shall come to us from him; whether of the Plague, or other∣wise, as Psal. 91. Those which sin against his pre∣sence, and have not the love of God in them, do lye open to the hand of his destroying Angel; but whosoever have good Consciences towards his presence with us, & love his name, if we should now fear the fears of worldly men, we dishonour the presence of the living God, we bewray our infidelity in his presence, which is all sufficient to keepe us, that the evill one shall not hurt us, or if we are faithfull in his presence, that hath all pow∣er in his hands: so as a sparrow cannot fall with∣out Page  44him, nor a hayre of our heads perish; but h••• his al-seeing spirit, if we are thus perfect in hi• love, without feare or doubting of our safety when destructions, and distracting distresses a•• in the world, though notwithstanding in this life all things come alike to us: so as we are taken i• the Plague, &c. yet we shall see that the hand 〈◊〉 our Master is present in it for our good, either to try our faith in his presence, and to make us mo•• perfect in love, or else out of his fellow-feeling of our reproach and misery, which we endure in this life, he is pleased to give us rest from our suf∣ferings, and to bring us to himselfe, from the bon∣dage of mortality; for the blessings and promises of peace or long life, is of faith, and cannot be ful∣ly enjoyed by sight in this world; while the wo∣man (which is the Church of Christs presence or any member thereof, wherein his presence i• manifested) is persecuted, and afflicted in this present evill world.

3. Having observed the naturall evill of mans heart, infected by the evill and common spirit o• the Prince, of the authority of the ayre, by the operation whereof, they are naturally inclined either fulnes of eating & drinking, & in the abun∣dance, or in the want of houses, Sheepe, Cattell, gold, silver, or other pleasures of life, to be lifted up in forgetfulnesse of God that made us, or to be cast down with worldly sorrow, and in these estates to leave the Word, Law, and presence of Page  45God to seeke after our own hearts till destructi∣on do utterly break the evill heart: I have seene •he only meanes, whereby a man may possesse his •wn heart, to rule it, and make it subject to his •pirit; namely, by hearing, obeying and keeping his evill heart of the mortall soul subject to the ••bukes and chastisements which our Creatour •oth inflict: that induring the paine in our flesh, •ur spirit may thereby know the feare of his presence in punishment, and thereby learn wis∣•om in the obedience of his Sonne Jesus Christ, whom he hath proposed to us, and made a light •o immortality, the harder the strokes, or the •reater our afflictions are, the more earnestly we •ay cry, and the nearer we may draw unto his Majesty. Prov. 15.30. to 33. Heb. 12. So as when •mong all estates of men in the world, whether •ewes or Gentiles, we see troubles and amaze∣ments, fearing death, and seeking to save their ••fe, we shall find that only with the suffering Christians, is peace without fear of death; be∣••use these according to the Law, and example of •hrist, do possesse their soules and mortall life in ••tience, under the death that man is able to kill ••em with. And therefore when the Kingdom of God cometh to the terrour of the worldlings, ••ese shall lift up their heads, because now their •edemption is come, Luke 21.19. &c. to 36.

4. The Lord Jesus foreseeing how hardly men should be drawn to acknowledge him to be the Page  46Christ, and being acknowledged how easily men would be seduced by false prophets, and false Christs to deny him: Therefore, first he proveth himself to be the Christ that Moses did write of, who by miracles did confirme the truth of every jot and tittle of the Law, and the Prophets, as Mat. 4.23.24. with 5.17.18, 19. &c. whereas false Prophets under colour of miracles, did teach transgression of the Law, as Deut. 13.1. &c. and 17 2. &c. with 18.13. &c. And accordingly out Lord reacheth us to try the Preachers, which af∣ter him should come in his name, as under the name of Jesus Christ, and Prophets of God, thus; if they call Lord, Lord, and in his name prophesie, and in his name cast out Devills, and in his name do many miracles: yet if under pretence hereof, any of them do work lawlesnesse, that is, do transgresse, and also teach men to transgresse any the least of all the Commandements in the Law of God: these and all such are rejected and ac∣cursed of the Lord, and judge of the world, as false, and deceivers of men, Mat. 5.19. with 7.15.21. 22.23. whereby we see how fearfull a thing it is, to forsake the Law and the Prophets, for in that estate we are without all meanes to know Jesus to be Christ in truth, without any knowledge to try deceivers; but remain as men deceived, and deceiving others, and can by no meanes come to the true knowledge of Christ, till we believe the writings of Moses and the Prophets, Iohn 5.39. Page  4746.47. which who so believe, and do the will of our Father which is in Heaven, and then call Je∣sus Lord, shall enter into the Kingdom of Heaven, Mat. 7.21.

5. A man may prophesie of a truth, and yet apply spirituall things to a carnall sence. As Caraphas fearing the Romans should come and destroy them all: for Jesus the King of the Jews said, it is expedient rather that one dye, them all; whereas God intended the spirituall and e∣ternall salvation by his death, Iohn 11.47. to 53. Feare enforced the Jews to do what they did.

6. From the opposition of the authority of men, against the authority of God in Christ, we may see the bondage under men by the Law, and the liberty of the Law in Christ, in things indif∣ferent: as it is lawfull to the Nations to remain in the presence, or to be circumcised upon occa∣sion, in liberty from bondage o the worldly au∣thority, Act. 16 3. with Gal. 2 3, 4 Rom. 2.25.26. It is lawfull to marry, to not to marry, 1 Cor. 7. 28.36.38. with 9 5. It is lawfull to eat lawfull meate, or it is lawfull to abstain and to fast, or such like. But this liberty man be occasion of e∣vill in respect of the different authorities: It a man fear the authority of men, and will be cir∣cumcised in bondage to their Priesthood, he is fallen from the liberty of Christ, and hath denyed Page  48the faith in his Priesthood, Act. 15.1. &c. Gal. 5. 1. &c.

If on the other side, a man fear other worldly authority, and make circumcision in the liberty of the Gospel to be sin; such do denye the liberty wherein Christ hath made them free, to use it for their advantage in the Gospel, Act. 16.1.3.

So as in this thing of Circumcision, if one be compelled to be circumcised, he is brought in bondage to men, and bound to observe the worldly elements, Gal. 5.3. If a man stand fast in the liberty, neither to be Circumcised, nor to re∣main uncircumcised, in subjection to men, he hol∣deth the truth of the Gospel, Gal. 2.3.5. with 5. 1 Act. 16.3. otherwise, if the word be not holden in freedom of spirit, it will be an occasion of evill under the bondage of men: And on the other side, it may be occasion of evill, under the autho∣rity of Christ, when it is not hold on as a thing indifferent; namely, when men justifie themselves, or think themselves the better for doing, or not doing it; for Circumcision is nothing, nor per∣puce is nothing, but the keeping of the Com∣mandements of God, 1 Cor. 7.18.19.

So if Marriage be exhibited under the worldly authorities, it may bring the parties into bondage; likewise, if lawfull meates be forbidden by the Doctrines of Devills, we are to maintain our li∣berty in Christ, in assurance, that though we suf∣fer Page  49death, yet he will raise us again according to his priesthood, 1 Tim. 4.1. &c. 10. Alwayes with this respect in the Law of liberty, that there be no justification of condemnation on one side or other, in lawfull meates; but to judge indifferent∣ly, that he which cates is not the better by it, nei∣ther is he the worse which cates not. 1 Cor. 8.8. wherefore in all such indifferent things every man is to have respect to his own Conscience be∣fore God, and to the present estate and Nation, wherein he is either Jew or Gentile, that he be without offence, but to use his liberty, not for a∣ny occasion to his own flesh, but to the profit of others, in such sort, that whether any eat or drink, or what other indifferent thing soever they do, they may do all to the glory of God. 1 Cor. 10.23, 32.33, 31.